The YSA
by FannyT
Summary: When Inuyasha was handed the responsibility of the latest case of the Youkai Secret Agency he had no idea where it would lead him. And if he thought the case was interesting, it was nothing compared to his new colleague.
1. Welcome to the YSA

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this story.

Welcome to the YSA

It was another boring day in the life of the Youkai Secret Agency, "You name it, we trace it!" The ones stuck with office duty were the two brothers Inu-yasha and Sesshoumaru. The latter had after a fast but furious fight won the right to the desk and was lounging at his ease in the chair, looking through a few papers, while the former sat cross-legged in the rather ratty armchair in one corner of the room, carving a dragon into one of the arms. Neither spoke.

Finally Sesshoumaru looked up, took a crayon from the pen jar on the desk and threw it at Inu-yasha's head.

"Hey, stupid."

Inu-yasha jerked, then looked at his carving, swore and glared accusingly at his brother.

"Oh, great work, buddy. You just made this guy lose a leg." He cocked his head to one side and regarded the picture thoughtfully. "Actually, it doesn't look all that bad. I'll just carve a moon into his forehead and call him Sesshy."

"That was not funny."

Inu-yasha only gave his brother a big, sunny smile in reply. Sesshoumaru rolled his eyes and held up a file stamped IN PROGRESS.

"Did we ever finish the Mrs. Innards case?"

"The serial killer?" Inu-yasha looked up briefly from the arm of his chair, where he was now slowly and laboriously carving in the word Sesshy. "Yeah, Jinenji found her. She was one of those old, yucky demons you don't even think exist anymore – you know, the ones who look like something the cat dragged in and have roughly the same IQ, too. Apparently she was living in the sewers, underground. Jinenji killed her and exterminated her nest. If her eggs had hatched it could have turned really nasty – she would have started teaching her... kids, or whatever you want to call it, to hunt humans too – so it was lucky he found it in time."

"Yes, of course. So why isn't it recorded in here?" Sesshoumaru tapped a knuckle on the yellow file. Inu-yasha shrugged.

"It was the day before his transfer."

"To the police force? Ah, alright. I guess it's excusable then." Sesshoumaru took a black marker from the pen jar and wrote CLOSED in large block letters across the file. "Since you seem to have all the facts, do a quick report, just for the record, on the outcome and encounter with Mrs. Innards. Cute name, by the way. Who came up with it?"

"I did."

"Really?" Sesshoumaru raised an eyebrow. "You're smarter than you look. Not that that's saying much. Inu-yasha, when will you get a proper dress sense?"

"What?" Inu-yasha looked from his worn jeans with the knees poking out and black T-shirt bearing the words "SAME SHIT, DIFFERENT DAY", to his brother's spotless black jeans and white turtleneck sweater. "What's wrong with my clothes? At least they say something about me, unlike yours. Talk about... well, drab..."

"Better than looking like something found in a trash can. What does that say about you, I wonder?"

"Take that back."

"You know it's true."

"Sonofabitch."

"Bastard."

"Sissy."

"Delinquent."

"Snob."

"Excuse me?"

Both brothers looked up as the feminine voice spoke and saw a young woman standing at the door. She was wearing a neatly pressed blouse and short beige skirt with matching jacket, and had her long black hair gathered in an elegant bun. The overall impression was of a business woman or a lawyer.

"Welcome!" said Sesshoumaru, smiling amiably. "How may we help you? Please, take a seat."

"Thank you." The woman carefully sat down in the chair in front of the desk, looking relieved when she found that it didn't fall to pieces. She looked around herself with her eyebrows raised, taking in the unwashed windows, the pile of pizza cartons in one corner and the dartboard, stuck full as a pincushion with darts, knives and even an arrow or two. One corner of her mouth lifted in a half smile, half sneer. "I had... some trouble with finding your office, I must say. You don't live a very official life, do you?"

"That's what the "Secret" in our name stands for, miss...?"

"Miko. Kikyo Miko. Well, I just hope you're up to scratch."

"Oh, don't worry about that," said Inu-yasha hastily. "I can promise you we're among the top youkai agencies."

"Well, I should think so," said miss Miko with a spark of amusement in her eyes, "seeing as you're the _only_ so called youkai agency."

"What is your reason for coming to us, miss Miko?" said Sesshoumaru, shooting a quick look at his blushing brother that all too clearly said "just be quiet before you make an absolute fool of yourself".

"I want your help with a rather delicate matter," said miss Miko, turning her attention back to him. "I represent the lawyer firm Prada, and we would like you to look into the doings of a demon called Naraku. He is the owner of the Spider Club, and my firm suspects that he is part of a large drug deal. We would dearly like to pin the crime on him, but we don't have enough evidence. That's why we need you."

"Naraku... Inu-yasha, don't we have a lead on him from the case of kidnapping?" Sesshoumaru turned to the other demon, who shrugged.

"Can't remember. Toss me the file."

Sesshoumaru reached into a drawer and rummaged for a while, then threw the file to Inu-yasha, who caught it easily and started to flick through it. Sesshoumaru turned back to miss Miko, picking up his note book from the desk.

"We will go to work on this immediately, miss Miko. Now, if I could just have your firm's contact address or phone number..."

"Actually, we agreed that it would be better if this was all handled through me." Miss Miko gave him a charming smile, showing very white teeth. "I don't have a home address, as I'm staying at a hotel right now, but you can take my cell phone number."

"Alright," said Sesshoumaru, looking surprised for a second but quickly hiding it again. "I'll have that, then." After miss Miko had given him her number he followed her to the door, telling her that they would get to work on the case immediately. He turned around after closing the door behind her and found Inu-yasha glaring at him jealously.

"Smarmy devil."

"Oh, what a sore loser," smiled Sesshoumaru, walking over to the desk and dropping into the chair, looking very pleased with himself. "Have I ever told you that you behave like an idiot when there are pretty girls around?"

"Shut up."

"Looks like an interesting case, doesn't it? Can you find anything in there?"

"Nothing." Inu-yasha heaved an exasperated sigh and ran his hands through his hair. "Looks like it's Koga who handled the paperwork on this one. Just a few handwritten pages, containing nothing of importance. It's a wonder we could even finish the case, with the sad state of this..."

"Now you see how important it is to do your paperwork properly."

"Yeah, yeah. Anyway, the only thing I can find is a small note that says we suspected Naraku might have some connection to the kidnapping, but it seems like we couldn't trace it back to him. The one who was arrested in the end was someone called Goshinki, maybe we should check with him. There was probably a lot more that Koga didn't think worth mentioning, that could have helped us now, but that's just the way he is."

"We'll have to pay that family a visit, then. They might remember something about the kidnapping that will be of use to us now. What was their name again? I remember the boy's name was Kohaku, but I've forgotten the parents' names..."

"There were no parents. We were hired by the boy's sister, Sango Gari. They are orphans. Their father committed suicide, according to the police. According to miss Gari, it was murder, but there was no such evidence. Alright, I'll pay them a visit then?"

"Do so. And then you'll have to pull some strings among the shady parts of town. Meet up with all your little friends and see if anyone has information for us."

"You don't have to sound so full of contempt," said Inu-yasha, feigning hurt. "Thanks to my "little friends", as you call them, many a case has been solved. You should be happy I have such contacts."

"I am, believe me. I just want to know how you got them."

"Are you sure?" Inu-yasha grinned devilishly, quirking his eyebrows. Sesshoumaru hesitated.

"...Actually, never mind."

They worked in silence for about half an hour, looking through all the material they had and trying to find something on Naraku. Sesshoumaru was interrupted in the middle of reading through a dreadfully boring report on drug dealings by a soft knock on the door.

"Come in," he called casually, then smiled as he recognized the face at the door. "Ah, welcome back, miss Miko. Did you forget something?" The woman frowned in confusion, giving Sesshoumaru time to notice something. "Did you change your clothes?"

"Excuse me?" The woman stepped into the room and crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm afraid you're mistaking me for someone else. My name is Kagome Higurashi."

Inu-yasha and Sesshoumaru looked at her in surprise. When they looked closer they could both see the difference between her and the earlier visitor – she was slighter in stature and carried herself very differently, with rather more attitude than miss Miko. She also dressed very differently. Instead of the feminine and stylish suit worn by the lawyer, Kagome Higurashi wore black pants and singlet, and a jeans jacket with worn-out elbows. But the likeness between their faces was stunning.

"I'm sorry, miss Higurashi," Sesshoumaru said finally, remembering his manners. "It's just that you look very much like a customer who came in earlier today. Do you have a sister or cousin called Kikyo Miko, by any chance?"

"Nope, all I have is a brother, and he's not called Kikyo," grinned the woman. "And please, call me Kagome."

"Alright, Kagome. Would you like to sit down? Don't worry, the chair won't break. Probably. Now, what are you here for?"

"I want you to give me a job."

"Say what?!" Inu-yasha exclaimed from his corner of the room. "You want to work here?"

"Yes." Kagome smiled. "I want you to hire me as an agent. I can promise that you will not be disappointed."

"Girl, did you even stop to read the sign on the door?" Inu-yasha asked, now grinning slightly. "It says Youkai Secret Agency. Do you know what youkai means?"

Kagome frowned and looked at Sesshoumaru, who shrugged.

"For once I do actually agree with my brother. We employ youkai, demons, and as far as I can tell you are completely human. Besides, we have no need of another agent at the moment."

"Oh, is that so?" Kagome narrowed her eyes, looking rather angry. "And I, silly me, thought that you had just lost one of your agents when he became a police officer. I must have gotten that completely wrong...right?"

"How did you know that?" asked Sesshoumaru, looking mildly surprised.

"That's of no importance. Will you hire me?" When she saw that he still hesitated – Inu-yasha was looking outright incredulous at the thought – she gave a snort of impatience and started looking through her pockets. Sesshoumaru waited patiently until she finally found what she was looking for and handed him a piece of paper. "That's an order from the CIA for you to take me on. I was hoping you'd hire me anyway, but that's life. Now, I do believe you have no choice but to agree with what that paper tells you."

"What happens if we don't?" asked Inu-yasha rebelliously, but was silenced by a gesture from his brother.

"I see that we have to follow the orders here," said Sesshoumaru, looking not very happy about it. "So, welcome to the YSA. Can you do anything, Kagome?"

Kagome smiled grimly. Before they had time to see what she was doing she had pulled a thin knife out of her jacket sleeve, stood up, taken aim and thrown in at the dart board – straight into the bullseye. She put her hands in her pockets and stared Sesshoumaru into the eyes.

"I have a full education in the CIA and I have worked for three years on the streets. I can take care of myself. As I just demonstrated, I'm rather skilled with knives and I have good aim. I can find out information without being noticed. The CIA appointed me here because they knew that Prada Inc. would hire you to investigate Naraku, and they wanted one of their own on that, too. We have for a long time tried to pin something on Naraku, because we believe he has a lot of illegal stuff going on. Now, we can cooperate on this, or you can decide you don't like me being here and make both my own and your lives hard. What will it be?"

Sesshoumaru was staring at her in great surprise, but regained his senses and smiled.

"I get the point. Well, Kagome, once again: welcome to the YSA. And this time I mean it. If Inu-yasha is finished with those files, maybe you two can run along to the kidnapping family? I think I can manage on my own here for a while."

"And why do I have to go?" Inu-yasha grumbled, rising from his chair and scattering files everywhere.

"Stop sulking. You can take my car." Sesshoumaru reached into his pocket and threw a set of keys to Inu-yasha, who brightened immediately.

"Alright! Let's go, girl."

"My name is _Kagome_."

"Well, well, just look at the two of you!" said Sesshoumaru as they prepared to leave. "How cute. One might almost think that the YSA had started with uniform." Inu-yasha and Kagome both turned back towards him, wearing identical puzzled expressions.

"What do you mean?" asked Inu-yasha, just as Kagome said "Say what?" Then they looked at each other and simultaneously exclaimed "Hey!"

Kagome's black singlet bore the words "SAME SHIT, DIFFERENT DAY".


	2. First interview

Hello everybody... sorry I've seemed like I just died – this was not the case. I've had tons to do, but now I'm back! Ready, willing and able! And with a nice new story for you! :) Enjoy...

First interview

"Maybe we're soul siblings," said Kagome as they whizzed down the street in Sesshoumaru's nice little silver cab (Inu-yasha was driving).

"Yeah sure, and I'm Elvis Presley," Inu-yasha snorted, swerving sharply to avoid a lamp post.

"Yes, OK, scratch that," grinned Kagome as a boy was just about to cross the street threw himself back onto the pavement, shaking his fist at them. "My soul sibling would be able to drive. WATCH THAT BIKE!!!"

"Jeez," said Inu-yasha carelessly after breaking so hard that he left ten-metre long, black marks in the road. "You're almost a bigger sissy than my brother. I have complete control over this car."

"Tell that to Sesshoumaru when you return it in pieces," muttered Kagome quietly.

Despite all laws of nature, which said that Inu-yasha ought to be a) dead, b) trapped somewhere in an overturned, smashed-up car or c) in jail, they got to the house safely (more or less). Inu-yasha pulled up on the pavement, narrowly avoiding two trees and a fence. Kagome more fell than stepped out of the car, mumbling about "maniacs, maniacs, the lot of them". When she had calmed down they walked up to the house and rang the door bell.

"Oh yes!" said Inu-yasha suddenly. "I should probably warn you that the owner of this house is a little – "

"WATCH OUT!" Kagome pushed him out of the way just in time – a sand bag dropped down from above the door, landing just where he had been the second before.

"– paranoid," Inu-yasha finished. "Thanks, by the way."

"What did you say her name was?" asked Kagome urgently, suddenly looking very nervous. She never got her answer though, because just then the door opened and a young woman stepped out.

"Hello again, Inu-yasha," said Sango Gari. "Didn't I tell you about our safety precautions? You have to be more careful. What brings you here now?"

"I'm here to – " Inu-yasha began, then stopped as he realized that she was no longer listening to him. Instead she was staring, open-mouthed, at Kagome.

"What on _earth_ are you doing – "

"Sango, long time no see!" chirped Kagome, throwing her arms around the other woman's neck. "I've just been transferred from the _CIA_ to this agency, isn't it amazing how small the world is? Wow, is this your new house? Won't you show me around quickly? I'm sure Inu-yasha has _seen it all before_, but I would love a _quick little tour_." She stared pointedly at Sango, who nodded and turned to Inu-yasha with a charming smile.

"Of course. Would you mind just waiting out on the porch for a while then, Inu-yasha, while I show my old friend here the house? I'm sure Kohaku will be happy to see you, too."

Feeling very bewildered, Inu-yasha walked through to the porch and sat down in the garden sofa – first disabling the hidden booby trap – while the two girls disappeared into the house, talking to each other with low voices. He didn't have to wait alone for long however – as soon as Kohaku heard he was in the house he came bouncing out to see him. Kohaku had gone so far as to almost worship the man who had helped save him from the kidnapper's clutches, something Inu-yasha found a bit embarrassing.

After about five minutes Kagome and Sango turned up again, chatting and laughing together.

"Isn't it fantastic, Inu-yasha?" said the former, jumping into the sofa to sit next to him. "That the woman you worked for is my old school mate. The world really is tiny!"

"Yes, yes." He waved a hand impatiently. "Have you told her why we're here?"

"No, I totally forgot. Why don't you start from the beginning, you know a lot more than I do, probably."

"Fine." Feeling a bit irritated, Inu-yasha started telling Sango about the demon Naraku, who they wished to find out more about. He could see Sango tensing up and Kohaku who was still with them looking nervous as he spoke, and was not surprised when they, as he stopped talking, both spoke at once.

"I'm sure he's the one who killed our father," said Sango and "The man who had me prisoner spoke about someone called Naraku on the phone," said Kohaku.

"OK, one at a time. Sango?" Inu-yasha pulled a notebook and a pen from his pocket.

"Well, I have no evidence..." Sango spoke hesitantly, looking a bit unsure of herself. "But he had been going to that club Naraku owns, the Spider Club, for a while – I know 'cos I found tickets in his pockets – and the day before he died, Naraku himself came to see us. I didn't see him myself, but dad said later that he had been here. He looked pale and scared that day. And it just wasn't like dad to commit suicide!" Her voice had grown stronger as she spoke, and when she finished Inu-yasha could see tears in her eyes. He put the notebook down on the table in front of him and leaned forward, looking into her face seriously.

"I can't promise you that I'll find out who murdered your father," he said gently. "But I do promise that we'll do all in our power to find whoever it was and have that person punished. Maybe it was Naraku and we won't have to look far to find the culprit. But you can never be too sure. Here, have a hanky." He handed her his handkerchief, and then turned to her brother. "Now, Kohaku. Can you tell me everything about this phone call you heard?"

"Well, I was tired and scared, so I don't even know if I heard right..." Kohaku wrinkled his forehead, trying to remember. "The guy who had locked me up there, anyway, he was talking on the phone when I woke up one night. He said something about me, that he had the brat now, I think..." Kohaku looked miffed about this insult. "Then I think he said _"So you'll tell Naraku I did my part of the deal then"_. It might just as well have been Hakkaku or Mawaku or whatever, but I remember thinking it was Naraku partly because that kidnapper-man, Goshinki, he had a tattoo of a spider, and I knew Naraku owned the Spider Club. I don't remember much more after that, except that he asked if they wanted to use me. I couldn't hear if the person he was speaking to had said yes or no. But it didn't really matter, 'cos the day after you turned up arrested that guy." He looked admiringly at Inu-yasha, who flushed slightly.

"OK, thanks, guys," he said, snapping his notebook shut. "We'd be very grateful if you could call if you come up with something new. Something you think you know about Naraku. Everything's appreciated, no matter how small you think it is. Shall we get going, Kagome?"

"Yeah, sure! Let me just have another word with Sango first."

"Kohaku, you can follow Inu-yasha to the door meanwhile," said Sango. Kohaku was of course more than willing to oblige, so Inu-yasha found himself being dragged through the house, asked tons of questions about how it was like to be secret agent. As they were halfway to the door he suddenly remembered that he needed his handkerchief back, so he had no choice but to go back again, followed by Kohaku like a small but talkative tail.

Just before the garden doors his sensitive ears picked up part of the conversation outside, and what he heard made him stop short. He pretended to look at a picture on the wall while he listened to what the two girls were saying.

"Well, this is a new line of work, isn't it?" That was Sango's voice.

"Not really. It's much the same as what I've been doing in the past tree years."

"Yes, but this is the _Youkai Agency_. And you're neither demon nor just some agent. I can't believe you got them to hire you, Trix."

"Kagome! How many times do I have to tell you, my name is _Kagome_!"

"Oh yeah, sorry. I forget."

"You better not call me that in front of Inu-yasha."

"Speaking of which, he's pretty cute. Nice working with him, eh?"

Feeling that the conversation had ceased to be interesting, and being a bit too chicken to want to hear Kagome's reply, Inu-yasha stepped onto the porch and raised a hand in greeting.

"Yo. I just remembered that I actually need that hanky... thank you. Are you done with your girl talk now so we can leave, Kagome?"

"Aw, you have to allow two old friends to swap some gossip!" Kagome smiled, not batting an eyelid to show she had just been interrupted in a conversation he was not supposed to overhear. "See you Sango! Let's meet up for a coffee one day, alright?" At this Sango raised her eyebrows, looking shocked over the offer.

"Do you _know_ how easy it is to slip sedative drugs into an unguarded cup of coffee?" she asked.

"...It slipped my mind."

They left the Gari house, dodging a few more traps on the way. When Inu-yasha sat down in the front seat of the car to drive off, he realized that he couldn't find the car keys.

"Oh shit. Wait here, I've mislaid the keys. I'll have to go back to the house again..." He looked up and saw Kagome holding the keys in one hand, smiling cheekily. "What? When did you – "

"Wouldn't you like to know." She threw the keys into the air and caught them again casually, then grinned and jerked her thumb towards the passenger's seat. "Get over there, boy. On the way back, _I'm_ driving."

Sesshoumaru looked up as they entered the office again and raised his eyebrows when he saw the sulky look on Inu-yasha's face.

"What's the matter?"

"He's angry because I wouldn't let him drive," Kagome answered, tossing him the car keys.

"For that I will be ever grateful to you. I trust my car is still in good condition then? Thank you for saving her life. Did you find out anything from the Garis?"

"Nothing of importance." Inu-yasha sank into the armchair, sighing deeply. "Sango – the elder sister – is certain that Naraku was the one who killed her father, but she has no actual evidence. We'll just add that to the list of questions we want Naraku to answer... Anyway, the little brother had something more substantial – apparently he'd heard the kidnapper mention Naraku's name on the phone, wait a minute..." He pulled out his notebook and checked what he had written. "I quote Mr. Kidnapper: _"So you'll tell Naraku I did my part of the deal then"_. He had also asked if "they" wanted to use Kohaku. Now, I don't know about you, but that sounds rather kinky to me. The kid is thirteen years old, for chrissake."

"Was that all?" asked Sesshoumaru.

"Yes..." Inu-yasha looked at his brother. They could often get things across to each other without talking, and the look the shared right now said as plain as day, _You and I gotta talk. Now._

"Alright. Kagome, as you are the new one, I do believe it's your turn to make us lunch. A bit late, I admit, but our old man always used to say that lunch _should_ be eaten around four o'clock." Sesshoumaru smiled at the girl, who bit her lip.

"Aw jeez, and I' such a terrible cook. Pizza OK with you guys?"

"You will fit right into our group, I can tell that," laughed Sesshoumaru. "There's a shop right around the corner."

After Kagome had left he turned to Inu-yasha, leaned back in his chair and said, "Talk."

"I overheard Kagome talking to Sango Gari when we were at the latter's house," said Inu-yasha promptly. "Sango was amazed that Kagome was working for us and also said something about Kagome not being just some agent. She also called kagome by some other name... Trix, I think it was. When she did, Kagome became very agitated and told Sango she could under no circumstances call her Trix in front of me." Inu-yasha looked to see Sesshoumaru looking at him with his eyebrows raised.

"And?"

"And you don't think there's anything strange about that? She has another name, one she doesn't want me to hear. Don't you think it sounds the least bit fishy?"

"No." Sesshoumaru put his arms on the desk and leaned forward, smiling in the "big brother"-fashion that always drove Inu-yasha crazy when he was younger. "I'll tell you something about women, shall I? if they have a nickname that they think is silly or embarrassing for some reason, they will not want any guy to know it."

"That's you explanation, is it? It was just a nickname?" Inu-yasha gave a snort of impatience. "I don't buy it. She wouldn't act like that."

"Then what is your explanation, may I ask? She is some sort of criminal, pretending to be from the CIA while she is in reality plotting the downfall of our agency? Or wait! Maybe she is some sort of secret _secret_ agent, put here to control how we are running our business and exploit possible frauds? Please, Inu-yasha, don't be so suspicious. Just because she reminds you of a girl who snubbed you, you don't have to be nasty to her."

"That's not it!" Inu-yasha flushed, silently cursing his brother for always reading him like an open book. "And miss Miko didn't snub me."

"Whatever you say," said Sesshoumaru smugly.

Kagome returned after about half an hour, carrying three pizza cartons and beaming.

"The guy in that shop was such a sweetie! I love that place! He gave me a discount when he heard I work with you guys, 'cos he said you are regulars there. Oh yeah, sorry it took some time, but I had trouble choosing pizzas for you guys 'cos I didn't know what you wanted. Pepperoni and Calzone OK?"

"That's perfect!" Sesshoumaru looked nothing less than astounded. "How did you guess that those are our favourites?"

"Told you I could find out information," grinned Kagome. "Alright, I cheated a little. I asked Tony, the pizza guy, he knew."

After their meal, they spent another few hours looking up information on Naraku and his club. Sesshoumaru got his laptop from the car and spent a while surfing around several sites connected to the Spider Club, finding lots of interesting stuff but nothing that looked like it was connected to the case at hand. At about seven thirty he finally snapped the laptop shut and stood up.

"Well, I reckon we're done for the day. "Just pack everything up so we can get going. Kagome, can we give you a lift home?"

"Oh!" said Kagome, putting away the last files she had been going through and looking a bit fidgety. "Actually, I only just arrived this morning, so I haven't found a place to stay yet. But if you know a good hotel or something..."

"Well, let me think..." Sesshoumaru cocked his head to one side and wrinkled his eyebrows. "There is the Plaza, of course... wait! I know: you can stay with us. Inu-yasha and I share a very roomy apartment, and there would be no trouble to fit in another occupant."

"What?!" said Inu-yasha, and was completely ignored.

"Could I really? Thanks guys, you're the best!" Kagome positively sparkled. "I'll just nip off to the airport and pick up my luggage then. Left it in one of those deposit boxes they have... If you could just give me some directions to your apartment I think I'll be able to find it without too much trouble." After she had gotten her directions and rushed off, Inu-yasha turned to his brother with an incredulous look on his face.

"Now _what_ was that good for?"

"She's pretty," answered Sesshoumaru simply, then smirked as his brother looked disgusted. "And besides, if you're still suspicious of her this will be the perfect opportunity to watch her closely, right?"

"That was just an excuse and you know it."


	3. Flatmates

Flatmates

About an hour after the two brothers had arrived home - with Sesshoumaru's car, which he drove himself to avoid serious injuries - Kagome turned up on their doorstep, carrying a small bag and beaming. Once she had gotten inside she gave a gasp of delight and looked so impressed that Inu-yasha wondered if Sesshoumaru might be right when it came to choosing interior design after all.

"Oh wow, so this is your apartment? It's wonderful! What a lovely décor, it's really... what is the word..."

"Stylish?" asked Sesshoumaru, with a glance at his younger brother.

"Yes! That's it! It's beautiful..."

"Well, I'm glad someone here has taste, in any case." Sesshoumaru smirked at Inu-yasha, who very maturely stuck out his tongue in reply. "Certain areas in this apartment have a rather remarkable resemblance to Hiroshima. After the bomb."

"Sorry?" Kagome wrinkled her brow in confusion.

"He's referring to my room," Inu-yasha cut in.

"Style isn't in his dictionary," Sesshoumaru explained. Kagome giggled.

"That's fine by me. Bedrooms are supposed to look lived in."

"Yes, well..." Sesshoumaru smirked again. "Inu-yasha's bedroom rather looks _died_ in."

The guest room was hastily put in order and Kagome loved it from the moment she stepped over the threshold. In no time she had installed herself completely and was looking as if she had lived there all her life. She then explored the apartment thoroughly, finished in the kitchen where she quickly concluded that her hosts had even less experience in that part of the house than she had.

"Two apples and a packet of rice? What do you guys life of?"

"Take Away and Home Delivery," Inu-yasha answered, opening a folder on the table and running his finger down the list of Home Delivery menus. "What do you say about Chinese?"

"Fine," laughed Kagome, moving over to stand beside him and choose her meal. "I can tell you guys are bachelors, honestly... Of course, I live the same type of life myself, so I probably shouldn't say anything."

"The life of the secret agent," replied Inu-yasha. "Like in the movies, but without the glamour."

After the food had arrived the three of them spent a nice dinner together, laughing, joking and talking about the YSA. Kagome seemed strangely reluctant to tell the others about working for the CIA, so they didn't ask much, sensing that it was a sensitive spot for some reason. The time ran away and it was over twelve o'clock when Kagome finally checked her watch and gave a small shout of alarm.

"Oh, it's late! Don't we have to get up tomorrow?

"We have pretty flexible times, it's no worry," Sesshoumaru replied, checking his cell phone. "No message from Koga yet... that means he'll probably pop by here tomorrow to tell us what needs to be done. As we don't have desk duty, we'll have to hear with him to know what our schedule for the day will be. But you're right, it would still be a good idea to go to bed now. You never know when the bugger will call on us."

"Alright. I'll occupy your bathroom for a while then, if you don't mind." Kagome twinkled at them and they both assured her that it was OK. After she had left Sesshoumaru put his hands behind his head and leaned back in his chair with a self-satisfied grin.

"Want to bet who gets her first, brother?"

Inu-yasha threw an unfinished box of noodles at him.

--------------------------------------------------------

Koga rang the doorbell, hard. He knew the two brothers' morning habits - according to them, the day began around noon. And their reaction if woken up too early usually wasn't all that nice either. Sesshoumaru wasn't too bad, to be honest - he merely rolled himself into a ball and refused to speak for two hours - but Inu-yasha's vocabulary had once been enough to frighten the mailman into hysterics.

The door opened.

"About time - " Koga began, the stopped himself abruptly. In front of him stood a slender girl dressed in nothing but a singlet and pyjama bottoms that gave the word "shorts" a whole new meaning. She had a half-eaten apple in one hand and the morning paper in the other.

"Hello!" she said, smiling brightly at him. "Are you Koga? I'm afraid they aren't up yet, but if you come in I'm sure they will be out in a moment."

"What? Oh! Um, thanks... er..." He followed her in and joined her in the kitchen. He gazed at her in interest as she poured some coffee into the espresso machine and started it, wondering how Sesshoumaru always managed to snare such gorgeous girls. Casting around for something to say, he finally settled for the obvious.

"I didn't know Sesshoumaru had a new girlfriend."

"How funny." She laughed softly. "That you at once assume I'm _Sesshoumaru's_ girlfriend... is Inu-yasha that unattractive?"

"Oh!" Koga flushed. "Sorry, I just reckoned that Inu-yasha would probably have told me if he had met a girl..."

"Actually, I'm not Inu-yasha's girlfriend." The girl laughed again at the puzzled expression on Koga's face. "I'm just living here for a while. I was transferred from the CIA for the case you received yesterday, don't know if Sesshoumaru told you about it yet. I'm Kagome, your new colleague." She held out her hand and he took it, giving her his most charming smile.

"Our new colleague, huh?" he asked, thanking his lucky star. "I'm sure it will be a pleasure to work with you. We must take you out soon then, so you can meet all the others in the agency."

"Oh, I would very much like that," she smiled.

"Do I smell coffee?" said a voice, and Sesshoumaru appeared in the kitchen doorway, already dressed in jeans and a simple black shirt. Kagome jumped up with an "oh!" and opened a cupboard, bringing our three cups.

"You want some coffee too, I presume?" she said to Koga, who nodded distractedly and the turned to Sesshoumaru, who had sat down in the beside Kagome's.

"What's with you this morning?" he asked, looking incredulous. "You're lucid! I mean you're actually talking! And it isn't even nine thirty yet!" Sesshoumaru gave him a look full of reproach and shook his head sadly.

"Now really, Koga. Just imagine what an impression you must be giving Kagome of me." This made Koga blanch completely and he opened his mouth to inquire whether his friend had gone temporarily insane, but then shut it again. _So that's it_, he thought. _He thinks he's going to get lucky again, I wouldn't be surprised. Damn cocky bastard._

There was the sound of a body connecting with the floor and then a groan could be heard from a nearby room. Kagome looked up in alarm and put the coffee cups down on the table hastily, but the ohers merely grinned.

"Sounds like Inu-yasha is starting to get up," said Koga and reached for a cup.

Within a few minutes Inu-yasha appeared. He leaned against the side of the door and for a while seemed almost unable to go on. Finally he managed to take a few steps forward and gratefully sank into a chair, which he then promptly fell off. From under the table came a colourful string of curses, ending in mutterings about abnormally early morning hours. Koga and Sesshoumaru treated this as perfectly normal.

Kagome, meanwhile, was laughing her head off.

"So what have you got for us, Koga?" asked Sesshoumaru as Kagome put a cup of coffee on the floor beside Inu-yasha. "Is there a lot to do? Because this new thing is pretty big. Kagome here will be working entirely on that one, since she was especially assigned for it by the CIA."

"We got pretty far yesterday," Koga answered, "so the workload isn't that heavy. I think we can have two people on the Naraku case constantly, that wouldn't be too hard to arrange. Kagome and someone else. I think that I could - "

"Inu-yasha has worked alone since Jinenji quit us," interrupted Sesshoumaru quickly. Koga shot him a look of pure venom, to which he responded with one that said _Ain't gonna happen, buddy_, or at least something like it. "They have already started working on the case, so they would be perfect together for the job, I think. What do you say, Kagome? Could you work with Inu-yasha on this?"

"No problem for me." Kagome shrugged.

"Inu-yasha?"

"Mmffg."

"That's a yes, I think." Sesshoumaru smiled. "Then that's arranged. I'll keep working on our last case, then, so if you would go through that with me Koga..."

There was a loud snore from the floor, which told them that Inu-yasha had fallen asleep again.

--------------------------------------------------

Well, hello again! I'd like to tell you that my updates will be smooth, quick and regular, but I don't like to lie so I won't. I'm in my final year, school is murder and therefore I can't promise that I won't sometimes disappear for two weeks, because that might happen now and again. But don't worry, I'm alive and kicking and most importantly, writing.

Oh, and **elsiey**... cereal commercial? There's a cereal commercial with Trix? (whups) I just made a name up on the spur of the moment, a re-writing of "tricks" because she is tricky, the dear Kagome.

What kind of cereal?:)


	4. Who is Kagome?

Who is Kagome?

"Can I help that I'm a night person?" grumbled Inu-yasha as they made their way down to the garage. "I was probably a moth or something in my earlier life..."

"Well if you were a moth, I was... I don't know what I was." Kagome shrugged, then looked at the keys in her partner's hand. "Do you drive your own car as recklessly as your brother's?"

"What car?" asked Inu-yasha, grinning broadly. "You're about to see the _real_ way of transport." He opened the garage doors with a flourish and Kagome drew her breath in sharply.

"Wow!" she exclaimed, going over to Inu-yasha's motorcycle and inspecting it from all angles. "Is it a real Speed Demon? Christ, it is, isn't it? It must have cost a fortune! Ooh, just look at that design. This is a real beauty, where on earth did you find it?"

"Used motor vehicles store in the outskirts of town. They had no idea of its worth, and it was in a sad state, too. I got it for a fantastic prize and just fixed it up myself." Inu-yasha grinned proudly, but then remembered who it actually was he was talking to. "Hey wait a minute! You know motorcycles?"

"Of course," said Kagome, raising her eyebrows as if the idea was ridiculous. "I have my own – not a Speed Demon, but still – at home in New York."

"I thought you said you live in Washington," said Inu-yasha, recalling something she had mentioned during dinner the day before. Kagome looked uncertain for the most fleeting of seconds, but then laughed easily.

"Oh no, that's where I was stationed latest! I tend to call that home sometimes, but although it sounds corny, my heart is in New York. Now let's go! I can't wait to see if this motorbike lives up to its reputation. Can I drive?"

"You most certainly can't," said Inu-yasha firmly. He was a bit curious about Kagome's sudden change of city called home, but decided to leave t for the time being. "Nobody drives my baby but me. Hop on the back and put your helmet on."

"Ok," said Kagome grudgingly. She waited until he had got on, then jumped up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. Inu-yasha grinned to himself. _Like fun I'd let her drive_, he thought. _And miss this? No thank you._

"Where are we going?" asked Kagome as he started the engine. He grinned again.

"Well... you'll see."

Inu-yasha drove his motorbike relatively safely – compared to how he drove cars, at least. Still, Kagome was feeling rather weak in the legs when they arrived at their destination, which was a shady street in the middle of the town. Inu-yasha parked the bike next to a wall and then pulled his notebook out of his pocket. He wrote INU-YASHA'S BIKE on a page in a large letters, then tore it off and stuck it to the front of his bike. Kagome looked on in bemusement.

"What's that good for?"

"No one would be so stupid as to steal _my_ bike."

"Ah. Well known in these parts, are you?"

"I... guess you could say that, yes. Now let's go."

"Where?"

"There."

Inu-yasha pointed at a large pink neon sign that said The Happy Bunny. Kagome regarded it dubiously.

"Inu-yasha, would you mind telling me why we're going to a strip club?"

"As I said before, you'll see." Inu-yasha smirked and led the way; Kagome followed, looking like she was wondering what on earth she had gotten herself into. When they got to the door Inu-yasha knocked three times and stood back, motioning for her to do the same. After a while the door was opened by a young girl dressed in hotpants and, for lack of better word, bikini top. She crossed her arms over her chest (_Thank God_, thought Kagome) and stared haughtily at them both.

"You a cop?" she asked, running her eyes up and down Inu-yasha.

"I'm Inu-yasha," he answered simply. "Tell Yura I'm here."

The girl gazed at him for a couple of seconds, looking a bit confused, and then shut the door in their face. Kagome raised her eyebrows and stepped forward, raising her hand to knock again, but Inu-yasha stopped her.

"Just wait," he said, with a grin that told her he wasn't entirely unused to the procedure. Within a minute the door was opened again, by a girl with shoulder-length black hair, held back from her face with a ribbon. She was wearing black, knee-high boots and the skimpiest dress Kagome ad ever seen – which was saying something, actually. In her hands was a long piece of string, knotted around her fingers.

"La, Inu-yasha," she said, leaning languidly against the doorpost and starting to knit the string together into a cat-in-the-cradle. "What brings you here? Another investigation? Ooh, and who is this?" Her eyes had come to rest on Kagome and were regarding her with great interest. "Your new girlfriend?"

"No, no, this is our new agent, Kagome Higurashi," Inu-yasha explained, blushing a little. "Kagome, this is Yura. May we come in for a while? It _is_ another investigation, actually."

"Yes, alright." Yura stood aside to let them enter. "We're rehearsing," she added, "so maybe you wouldn't mind stepping into the dressing room? The girls get so nervous if you watch them during training."

"No problem with us," Inu-yasha replied, while Kagome gave a snort of disbelief and muttered something about "nervous, indeed". Yura led then to a room full of plumes, dresses and mirrors and pulled up two chairs. She herself stepped lightly up on a stool and then perched in mid-air.

"What the – " Kagome began.

"Yura is a hair demoness," Inu-yasha explained with a smile. "She spins hair all over the place and uses it as furniture. It's invisible to humans and to other demons as well, actually, but she's told me all about it."

"It's a great trick." Yura smiled devilishly. "Gives the customers a right thrill."

"Er... that's rather more than we need to know, honey," said Inu-yasha. "We want to know if you know something about a demon called Naraku. He's the owner of the Spider Club; did you ever work there? Do you have anything that could be of use to us?"

"La, let's see..." Yura looked up into the ceiling thoughtfully, twisting the string between her fingers into endless new shapes while she thought. "I had an offer to work there for a while, but you know me – can't stand bugs. There are spiders everywhere – the ones closest to Naraku actually have spider tattoos, the lot of them. Imagine. Anyway, we did do a show there once, but that was just a couple of days. What is it that you're interested in?"

"Drugs."

Yura's face lit up at once and her hands began to move even faster, knotting and unknotting the string faster than the eye could follow. "Ooh yes, there was a lot of the stuff there, I can tell you that much. It was sold in the wardrobe, over the bar, in the loos... but that had nothing to do with Naraku, it was more private dealers. 'Course, I don't think he minded much, but it isn't as if you'll have an easy time pinning it on him."

"Have you heard anything about a big drug deal?" asked Kagome. "Like in really big."

"You mean the Shikon deal?" Yura frowned in thought. "There have been whispers of it, yes. No idea who runs it, where it's coming from or anything. I've heard that a woman's in charge of a lot of it though."

"A woman? Human or demoness?" asked Inu-yasha. Yura shrugged.

"No idea. Not my area, you know. But let's see about Naraku now: he is a half-breed, he has had dealings with a human priestess once and he has the most awesome hair – midnight black, long and wavy..."

"Thank you, Yura," said Inu-yasha firmly. "Please, I know you love hair, but that doesn't really help us much. OK?"

"You are so boring," snorted Yura, miffed. "Very well. I don't think anything more of use to you, that's the problem. That's really all I know about him."

"The priestess he had dealings with... could you tell us a bit more about her?" asked Kagome. She was leaning forward in her seat, gazing intently at the other woman. Inu-yasha looked at her questioningly, but she did not react.

"They worked really close together," answered Yura, looping the string around and around her fingers. "She was co-owner of the Spider Club for a while. I don't know much about her though, she was often abroad – travelled a lot. She was powerful, I heard, and she had contacts all over the world. Then she got landed in prison for some shady dealings, might have been illegal weapons or something 'cos it was connected to the club, and that was the last anyone heard of her."

"Which prison?" asked Kagome.

"Sunset Gaol. It won't help you though, honey. She escaped about a month after her imprisonment, and then she just disappeared. Not even Naraku heard from her again, which is strange."

"Why?"

"La? Well, because..." Yura pulled her hands apart and held them up, showing that the string had been knotted together to form a heart. "Rumour has it that the two of them were more than just friends, if you catch my drift."

"OK, don't know if that's really important," smiled Inu-yasha, but Kagome cut in.

"You never know," she said, pulling on a lock of hair. "You never know." She seemed lost in thought for a moment, but then looked up and grinned. "Well thanks, Yura! We have learnt lots to our advantage. But maybe we should get going. Or do you have any more questions, Inu-yasha?"

"No, I don't think so." Inu-yasha stood up. "But you'll be sure to call if you find out something, won't you?"

"Of course," said Yura carelessly. "You know I always do. By the way, Kagome... I have to ask, haven't you been here before? I recognized you as soon as you came in here. You have great hair, you know, nice and bouncy. Not a scalp I would forget in a hurry. Weren't you the one who looked into those serial murders of our strippers?"

"Wait, I heard of those," said Inu-yasha, frowning thoughtfully. "Turned out to be a priest, right? I didn't know the CIA was on the case of that..."

"The CIA?" asked Yura, looking puzzled. "That was the CIA you were from?"

"Yeah, wouldn't believe it from the looks of me, would you?" Kagome laughed easily. "That was a big hush-hush business, we kept it secret we were on the job. Now that I think about it, I recognize you, too. Small world, right?"

"Right..." Yura looked at Kagome, and opened her mouth as if to say something else. Then she shrugged. "Oh, whatever I think I have to get back to practise now, so if you'll excuse me..."

"Of course," Inu-yasha answered quickly. "Run along and give my regards to the others. We'll find our way out by ourselves."

"Can't imagine you'd have a problem," smirked Yura. "See ya." She jumped down from the strand of hair she had been sitting on and walked out of the room. Inu-yasha and Kagome left as way and turned the other way, walking out to the front door."

"Don't know if that gave us much," sighed Inu-yasha, running a hand through his hair. Kagome, however, smiled – a far-away, knowing smile.

"Oh, I don't know..." she said. "I thought that was rather informative. Hey, what happened to your bike?"

They had gone a few steps down the street and before them stood the motorbike, still there, still intact, but soaking wet. Inu-yasha froze, then sighed loudly and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Alright, come out," he called, to no one in particular what Kagome could see. No sooner had he shouted the words however, than two demons suddenly appeared before them, floating down from the sky – one riding on a rain cloud, the other with wheels stuck under his shoes. They halted right in front of Inu-yasha, hovering two metres above the ground.

"They're thunder demons," Inu-yasha explained to Kagome, who was looking puzzled. "Alright, which one of you morons thought it was funny to drench my bike?"

"Actually, we both did," smirked the tall, slim demon with the wheels. "Called on some rain demons. They're always ready to do our bidding, seeing as the alternative is getting roasted. They did a pretty neat job, don't you agree, Manten?" The fatter demon nodded and guffawed, making his cloud jump with his belly. Inu-yasha heaved a tired sigh.

"Do you enjoy making me suffer? That is a freaking Speed Demon, idiots!"

"Jeez, Inu-yasha, it will be all right," said the taller demon, rolling his eyes. "You are so paranoid when it comes to that damn bike."

"You've been to see little Miss Smart-Ass, haven't you?" asked the demon called Manten. "She give you anything good?"

"She gave me some good _information_, yes," said Inu-yasha, then turned to Kagome. "Manten doesn't like Yura because she tends to judge people by their hair. As you can probably imagine, the state of his head didn't make her happy."

"You shut up," grumbled Manten, running a hand over his bald pate.

"Really Manten, wake up and smell the roses," said his partner, looking bored. "You're BALD, so just get over it. This your girlfriend, Inu-yasha?"

"You know, you are the second to ask that in less than hour," said Kagome, smiling broadly while Inu-yasha turned a delicate shade of pink. "I'm Inu-yasha's new partner, but in work not in love. Kagome higurashi is the name. And your name is...?"

"Hiten," answered the demon, wafted down to her level and stuck out his hand to shake hers. "Enchanted. This is Manten, my brother." He waved a hand carelessly at the other demon, who lifted two fingers in greeting, still looking sulky.

"Oh, you're brothers," said Kagome, clapping her hands together. Hiten rolled his eyes again.

"Unfortunately."

"What are you here for, hiten?" asked Inu-yasha quickly, seeing that Manten was growling, looking threateningly at his brother.

"We thought you might have some information for us about the case we are working on." Hiten reluctantly switched his attention from Kagome to Inu-yasha. "I haven't heard from Koga yet, so I don't know how far you got yesterday. You had desk duty, didn't you?"

"Yes, but I'm now permanently assigned to the new one we got yesterday, about a large drug deal connected to Naraku. Know him?"

"Know him?" Hiten laughed. "We worked for the bastard!"

"You did?!" asked Inu-yasha, looking thoroughly surprised. "When?"

"Right before we came to the YSA. We worked at the door, as guards. It was OK, and great pay, but we had to quit eventually."

"Why?"

"Not good for my health," grunted Manten. "Standing out there in the cold every night. Gives me freaking pneumonia."

"Oookay," said Inu-yasha, biting his lip to hide a smile. "You know anything about him then?"

"Nothing." It was Hiten who answered this time. "There was a lot of stuff going on there, you know, but Naraku kept his back free alright. Like us, we were allowed weapons that definitely weren't legal, but you could never trace that back to him. If the cops had come it would have been someone else who was in charge, and he wouldn't have had anything to do with it but rather been shocked that something like that could happen at his nice club. You understand what I'm saying?"

"I think I do," answered Kagome. "The invisible hand, right?"

"Exactly," said Hiten, looking approvingly at her. "He would rather sell out his children than get busted himself. He even told on his girlfriend once... that was a nasty story..."

"Tell us, please." It was Kagome who spoke again, and when Inu-yasha looked at her he saw that she was wearing the same expression as when she asked Yura about the priestess connected to Naraku.

"Well, I don't know if she was actually his girlfriend," said Hiten. "Some said so, some said they were only partners because it was efficient. I never even saw her, myself. But the important part is that they had an agreement, and they owned and ran the club together. Then Naraku became aware that the police were on his tail, or rather, on the tail of something he was involved with. So he put that girlfriend (or whatever she was) of his in charge of that, and then he tattled to the cops."

Both Kagome and Inu-yasha winced. "That's just disgusting," said the latter, frowning.

"It is, isn't it?" said Hiten lightly. "I don't know how much of it is true, but one thing's for sure – it's very typical Naraku."

"Hey Hiten," Manten cut in suddenly, "I'm hungry. Are we done here?"

"Yes, I think we are, since Inu-yasha couldn't tell us anything worthwhile."

"Idiot. I told you we should have gone looking for Koga instead."

"Manten, since when are you the brains of this partnership?" Hiten looked disdainfully at his brother, then turned back to Inu-yasha and Kagome. "We will bid you good day, then. Good luck with the new case." He started to rise into the air, followed by Manten, and within a minute both of them were lost from sight.

"Lots of brotherly love there, I see," said Kagome sarcastically. Inu-yasha smiled.

"Yeah, they do look as if they truly despise each other – at first sight. But after you've known them for a while you start seeing that they really care for each other deep down. For example, when they started working at the Spider Club, they did it together. And when Manten realized it was bad for him, they both quit. They wouldn't dream of living apart, because they both rely a lot on each other even if they don't show it. And if one of them was threatened, the other would be there in less than a second."

"Aw. That's cute."

"Very. Now let's get out of here. Oh, my poor bike... are you all right, baby? It's OK, daddy's here now..."

"Oh, grow up.

----------- 

"So why does Yura tell you stuff?" asked Kagome as they sat next to a hot dog stand, eating a well-deserved – Inu-yasha thought – lunch.

"Helped her out of prison," answered Inu-yasha shortly.

"What?"

"She killed her guy. Strangled him with that piece of string she's always playing with. I got her out, don't ask how. I have some pretty nifty contacts."

"But why on earth would you free a murderess?" asked Kagome, frowning disapprovingly.

"The man she killed was an absolute asshole," Inu-yasha replied, looking away from her. "Beat her, used her, took her money... you don't want me to describe everything the bastard did to her, trust me. In the end it was kill or be killed, and out of the two of them I know which one I'd rather see in a mortuary. Trouble was, It landed Yura lifetime, which is as good as death anyway."

"But the judge must have seen..." Kagome began.

Inu-yasha looked back at her abruptly, eyes black and angry.

"Who believes a hooker?" he asked.

They sat in silence for a while, then Kagome spoke again. "You know, you're a pretty sensitive guy. Much more than one would think from just looking at you. That's nice."

"Sesitive?" asked Inu-yasha incredulously. "Excuse me?"

"You were very kind to Sango, for example," smiled Kagome. "She has had a tough time with her dad dying, and you were good about that. She's looking much better now than right after his death, I'm sure you've had a part in that."

"Known her long, have you?"

"Since that self-defence course we did together. She beat the crap out of me, I hated her for three days and then we became best buddies."

"Hadn't you met in school before then?" asked Inu-yasha, suddenly remembering that she had said she and Sango were old school mates.

"What?" Kagome frowned. "Oh! No, we started the same school after that."

"Really," said Inu-yasha, looking searchingly at her. There seemed to be some things about her that didn't fit together. Where she called home, how she knew different people, what her name was (why _had_ Sango called her Trix?) and what was it Yura had said? That she had been on the case of those serial murders, but Inu-yasha was sure the CIA hadn't been involved in that, and he'd kept good track of that case.

_Who is this girl, really?_ he thought.

-------------- 

Hello! Sorry for the long break... I'm having trouble with the computers, and with the time. Will try to pull myself together.


	5. Meet Miroku

Meet Miroku

"Alright, we have a note from Shippou here," said Inu-yasha as they came home to the flat. They had spent some more hours trying to find information about Naraku, but without success, and had finally decided to return home. "I called him right after we'd been to see Yura and he checked some things up. He says there is nothing worthwhile on the net about Naraku, or the Spider as he also calls himself, nor anything about the Shikon deal anywhere." Kagome peered over his shoulder at the sheet of paper and let out a snort of laughter.

"What on earth is that?!"

"Shippou's note."

"But it's just a lot of little drawings!" Kagome took the note in her hand and examined it closely. "Oh, I see... that's a spider, for Naraku, and this is a computer... with a spider web over it... oh, the web, that's the Internet then? Hey, these are good. But why on earth _draw_? Why doesn't he just write?"

"We think he did know how to write, once," answered Inu-yasha, scratching his head. "But for as long as I have known him I've never seen him write so much as his own name. He just prefers drawing, I guess... Anyway, Shippou's our youngest agent – seventeen and a whiz on computers. He _can_ write on the computer, now that I think about it..."

"He quit school?" asked Kagome, hanging up her jacket and going before him into the living room, where she sank onto the couch with a satisfied sigh.

"No, was kicked out. He hacked into the school's main computer and set up a bug. It didn't do any harm – just popped up on the principal's screen each time he logged on and said "Hiya boss" – but they still thought he was to clever with computers to stay on. Guess they were afraid he'd crash the whole system..." Inu-yasha grinned as he sat down in one of the armchairs. "He's a tricky little bugger. Drives me nuts, I can tell you."

"Alright. Well, let's see what we have on Naraku so far, why don't we..." Kagome consulted her notebook. "The people closest to him have spider tattoos – could be a lead if we want to know if someone's connected to him or the club. In his club there's lots of shady stuff going on, but of course nothing can be traced back to the Almighty, also known as Naraku. He had a girlfriend who was a powerful priestess, and who he betrayed rather cruelly. She sat in Sunset Gaol but escaped – and has not been seen since. Sounds like a mystery novel."

"Yes, well..." said Inu-yasha, "all that stuff about his girlfriend is not really important, is it?"

"You never known what's important or not," said Kagome firmly. She put her notebook down on the table and stretched her shoulders, then took her cell phone from her pocket and smiled at Inu-yasha. "Do you mind if I'm a bit asocial for a while? Have to answer a message."

"No prob," Inu-yasha replied. "I have to take a shower anyway."

"Oh, wait just a minute then!" Kagome quickly looked up from her phone. "Can you tell me where the nearest store is? I thought I'd go and buy us some breakfast stuff, you know, like _normal_ people have."

"Very funny. The store is down the street and then to the left. You can't miss it."

When Inu-yasha had showered he wrapped himself in a towel and went back to the living room, intending to open the windows to let in a bit of fresh air. After he had done so he saw that Kagome had left her cell phone lying on the table. He looked at it for a while, arguing with himself whether he should really be going through her personal stuff.

_If she's lying to us I have to know_, he finally told himself and sat down to read through her text messages.

The inbox was empty.

_Careful with her stuff, isn't she?_ he thought, raising his eyebrows. _Is it because she has something to hide or is she just the type who doesn't keep messages?_ He was just about to put the phone back on the table when he saw that there was one message in the outbox. He opened it and saw that it was the one she had written right before she went out. It was addressed to someone called Hojo.

"_Well, the younger brother is a really suspicious one _(the message read). _I feel like he watches everything I say. The older one is much more gullible._

"Have found out that she was most definitely connected to Naraku – but as of yet it is only the rumours of strippers and door guards. (They have some pretty unorthodox means of gathering information here...) I have some leads though, will check up and get back to you."

Inu-yasha sat back, wondering about the contents of the message. She must have been talking about him and Sesshoumaru, but why? She had noticed he was watching her then, too. Was she just angry over the fact that he was so suspicious (Inu-yasha gladly admitted it was one of his bad traits) or did she really have something to hide? And who was the "she" connected to Naraku?

"Honey, I'm home!" trilled a voice from the hallway and the door slammed. Inu-yasha looked up in alarm, realizing that he was still messing about with her phone – something she probably wouldn't like at all, seeing as she already thought he was watching her unnecessarily closely. _Think fast_, he told himself.

"Sorry, just couldn't resist saying that," grinned Kagome, stepping into the room with a plastic bag in each hand. "Never had anyone to say it to before, I've always lived alone... hey, what are you doing with mu phone?"

"Sorry for not asking," said Inu-yasha, looking up at her innocently. "I was just checking if you had my number. You didn't, so I added it. Might come in handy, right?"

"Right." Kagome smiled – weakly, Inu-yasha thought as the suspicious devil he was – and looked at her watch. "Um, I think Sesshoumaru might be home soon so we could get dinner ready now, don't you think? Dan – the guy owns the store I went to – told me that there's a nice pasta place not too far from here. It's a bit too far to walk though, so I was thinking you could maybe take the motorbike and get us something to eat? I have a map here. Please?" She smiled cutely at him.

"Yeah, sure," he replied, thankful that she hadn't pressed the matter of her phone. He stood up and took the map from her, and then started to walk towards the front door.

"Um, Inu-yasha?" said Kagome with a snort of suppressed laughter. "Maybe it's just me, but I think you might want to get dressed first."

...........................

A few days passed with lots of work, but not much to show for it. Naraku certainly watched himself well, and they didn't seem to be able to find out anything to his disadvantage at all. Inu-yasha was paying visits to all his strange contacts, but failing to dredge up anything of interest.

"So tell me who it is we're visiting again?" said Kagome as she got off the bike, right outside a music store. It was Friday and they had decided to take an easy day and quit after seeing this last person.

"Old friend of mine," answered Inu-yasha. "He's the one we should have visited yesterday, if we hadn't been held up by those stupid cops."

"Told you it was max seventy k's/hour," smirked Kagome. "He had started work by the time they let you off, was that it? What kind of person starts working after nine o'clock?" She frowned. "Let me guess – he's a pimp?"

"Really, you think so badly of me!" sniffed Inu-yasha. "What kind of friends do you think I have? Never mind, don't answer that," he added as he saw the look on her face. "This guy is a DJ anyway, that's why he works late."

The music store was full of people, and Kagome wondered how Inu-yasha could know that his friend was there, or how they were going to find him. Inu-yasha seemed to know exactly where to go though and walked purposefully to one corner of the store. A man was standing with his back to them wearing earphones, moving in beat to the music he was listening to.

"Miroku," said Inu-yasha. When the man didn't react he repeated the name, a little louder this time, and tapped the guy on the shoulder. Still there was no reply, and Inu-yasha looked pretty irritated. He lifted the earphones from the man's head and yelled right into his ear.

"MIROKU!!!!"

"YAAH!" The man jumped and glared at Inu-yasha. "Are you trying to make me go deaf, mate?"

"You manage to do that fine on your own. Can we talk? Let's go outside."

"But I haven't finished listening yet!" whined Miroku, but let himself be dragged around. As he did Kagome saw him fully for the first time, and gasped in surprise.

"_That_ Miroku?!"

"Kyoko!" Miroku exclaimed, brightening at once and taking her hand in both of his. "What on earth are you doing here? Are you still single?"

"You big idiot," said Kagome, smiling as well, though rather tightly. "My name is _Kagome_, don't you _remember_?" Miroku yelped and Inu-yasha saw that Kagome was squeezing his hand hard, digging her nails into his skin.

"Er, of course I remember!" Miroku said, letting go of Kagome's hand, very fast. "Sorry a thousand times over for... uh... confusing your name with someone else's."

"It's OK," smiled Kagome, back to her bright self. "Shall we step outside then?"

They found a bench in the sun and sat down together, Miroku watching Kagome a tad nervously. "How did you know I would be in the music store?" he asked, turning to Inu-yasha.

"You're always there," answered Inu-yasha. Miroku opened his mouth as if to disagree, then closed it again and thought for a while.

"OK, true," he said. "So what did you want me for?"

"Information," said Kagome. "On the Shikon deal, on Naraku and on Naraku's girlfriend."

"Ooh, she was a pretty one, I've heard!" Miroku's eyes lit up, then saw Inu-yasha's expression. "Er, but that's not important... no... well, what can I say? The Shikon deal is something really big, so I hear. Run by a woman, too, that's nice. She has been abroad a lot, and I heard a whisper that the stuff is from Japan."

"Do you know if she has any connection to Naraku?"

"No idea. He's one I haven't heard anything about for a while now. Keeping low, if you ask me..."

"We do," said Inu-yasha. "Ask you. Why has he been keeping low?"

"He had a near brush with death not long ago. I was on my way home from a wonderful party, real nice action on the dance floor, not to mention all the girls that were there..." He hesitated as he noticed Inu-yasha's rather stony glare. "Er, anyway, I happened to stumble across the area where he had been attacked. There were arrows everywhere and Naraku himself was in pieces."

"Pieces?!" asked Kagome incredulously.

"Yeah," Miroku grinned. "In a sad state, the bastard was. Of course, he's close to immortal, so it didn't do him that much harm. He's only a little hindered until he can find himself a new body. His friends were already at the spot with temporary body – don't want to know where they got it from – when I passed by, so he'll be OK. He's sure to be pretty pissed off though.

"I think it was a priestess who attacked him. Lingering by those arrows was a trace of those powers... and also of Soul Skimmer, that nice new perfume. Do you use that, Kyo– er, Kagome?"

"No, I don't. You actually sniffed the arrows?" Kagome wrinkled her nose.

"Of course. Best way to see who has used something is to use all your senses."

"How could sense that the power was that of a priestess?"

"Really," said Miroku, looking offended, "can't you tell that I'm a monk?" He gave Kagome a look of reproach, which she answered with a snort of laughter.

"You? A _monk_?!"

"Indeed. And a very good one, too. Anyway, the energy in that area was very strong. It must have been a powerful priestess who did it. One as strong, or even stronger, perhaps, as his old girlfriend."

"Yes, her. Do you know anything about her?" Kagome asked. Inu-yasha rolled his eyes. If he could just understand why she was so obsessed with that old girlfriend of Naraku's. It couldn't possibly have any bearing on the case.

"No," answered Miroku simply. "No one ever knew much about her. I haven't even seen her, and I worked for Naraku for quite a while. Although they say she was very pretty."

"We heard," said Inu-yasha. "That's all, is it?"

"Yes. Can I go and finish listening to my CD now please?"

"Of course. We have to get going too." Inu-yasha stood up and brushed off his pants. "Thanks for the help. You know where to call if you ever feel a sudden yearn to tell me something."

"Nice seeing you, mate," Miroku replied. "And nice meeting you again, Kyoko. Kagome. Do you have a sister?"

"No," said Kagome, looking wary. Miroku shrugged.

"Strange. 'Cos I could have sworn I saw you in the club yesterday, but then I realized it couldn't have been you 'cos you don't dress like that. So I thought this girl might be some relative. She looked like a lawyer of some sort, real snazzy."

"What?" Inu-yasha exclaimed. "But that sounds just like miss Miko! The woman who hired us," he explained to Miroku. "What would she be doing at your club?"

Miroku shrugged again.

"Partying?"

.........................

Howdie everybody! What's up in your life? Over here everything is good. The other day the driver of the tram I was riding on spoke on the speakers about our "fucked-up public transport system", "passengers who have, well, what are you supposed to say, nothing but porridge in their heads" and "we're now six minutes late because of the construction work on the road, this is what my life is like, people".

Things like that make my day.

**Elsiey: **You are so clever.

**Midnight hanyou:** Well, I just made peace with my computer, so updates should be a bit quicker from now on. Hopefully.

**AngeloflLight:** Welcome!;) (Am I wrong or is this your first time reading one of my stories? ...I didn't recognise your name.)

**Teyka:** Hello dear. Hope you'll enjoy my new stories... (If you don't I'll have Gordon eat your sneakers.) (Just kidding.) Oh, and about your comment to Live again, Inu-yasha! – of course it is one of _those_ stories. I just hope everyone won't hate me for it. :P (It's not that evident though.)


	6. Mind your own business

Mind your own business

"How strange that miss Miko was at Miroku's club," said Inu-yasha, throwing himself onto the living room coach in their apartment. "Maybe he mistook himself."

"So you've met miss Miko?" asked Kagome.

"Yeah, I – " Inu-yasha began, then looked up and saw her face. _What on earth's up with that sulky expression?_ he thought. _Weird._ "I met her when she came to give us the case, of course. She was nice, but kind of stuck up." Kagome smiled.

"Speaking of which," she said, "Your brother's pretty up himself, isn't he?"

"Whoa, I think you're the first girl ever who's said that," said Inu-yasha, looking astonished.

"Well, he is, right?" Kagome asked, pulling out her notebook and starting to flick through it. "I mean, he seems like the type who thinks he can get anything he wants." She paused, then looked at Inu-yasha with an open, honest smile. "I like you much better."

Inu-yasha blinked, then as Kagome went back to perusing her book, he smiled too.

"Thank you," he said. "I like you a lot too." At his words Kagome froze, looked up from her note book and stared him straight in the eyes.

"Well, fuck me," she said.

Inu-yasha gaped.

"Excuse me?!"

"The kidnapper!" Kagome exclaimed, which Inu-yasha found a very dissatisfying explanation of her earlier statement. However, in the next moment Kagome elaborated a bit more. "Kohaku's kidnapper! He had a spider tattoo, didn't he? That clinches his connection to Naraku! Yura said the people close to him had spider tattoos! We have to see him. Come on, let's go." She was already on her feet and Inu-yasha followed, very reluctantly.

"I thought we were going to call it a day?" he grumbled as they made their way down to the garage. Kagome gave him a sunny smile.

"You mean we should _rest_ now that we've unearthed such intriguing evidence? Not on your life, boy. However, if you are to tired to drive I can do you the favour of taking over the handles." She looked hopefully at him, but was disappointed.

"Not on _your_ life, missy."

They got to the Sunset Gaol without much trouble – if you didn't count almost running over a dog and accidentally scratching a police car as trouble.

"Hey, I just realized," said Inu-yasha as they walked to the front desk, "this is the same prison that Naraku's girlfriend sat in. You want to see if we can find something on her?"

"No go, already checked it," Kagome answered, then addressed the clerk at the desk, who looked like at least one of his parents was an ogre. "We're from the YSA, here to see Goshinki. Is that possible?"

The clerk grunted and gestured to two guards who looked like in their case, the ogre had been the pretty one of their parents. They in turn gestured to Inu-yasha and Kagome and set off at an ambling pace down one corridor. Kagome's shoulders shook with the effort of not laughing.

As they passed a window where a string of prayer beads were wrapped around one of the bars, she nudged Inu-yasha and whispered,

"That's where she escaped."

"Who?"

"Naraku's girlfriend. They found the guard of her floor strangled and all the other prisoners unconscious. The bars of that window had been blasted apart from the inside with her own magic. But someone from outside must have helped her, because she couldn't have done magic with those handcuffs of hers on. The question is who, and how they got in, because the only forced entrance was the window – well, that was an _outrance_, but you know what I mean."

"Maybe she had little snake friends who snuck in through the bars and helped her out of her cuffs?" shrugged Inu-yasha. He didn't really care, it wasn't on his case and he had a bit too much on his mind right now. Kagome stuck her tongue out at him and smiled, but then she became serious, apparently considering something.

"You know," she said thoughtfully, "you might just be onto something there."

Inu-yasha looked at her, wondering what it was that made her so interested in Naraku's girlfriend. She had sure managed to find out a lot about the escape, but why? _Maybe she's in love with Naraku and jealous of that other girl_, he thought, smiling to himself.

"Why was there a string of prayer beads around one of the bars of that window?" he asked.

"The strangled guard was a devout Buddhist. He also liked to stand by that window," she answered, and in her eyes was suddenly such a fierce hatred that Inu-yasha felt almost alarmed. Before he had time to ask her what was wrong however, the guards stopped. One of them pointed in towards a small room. The two agents looked in and saw that it was connected to the next room by a wall of glass, but there was no one there.

"Excuse me, do you know – " Kagome began.

"Prisoner LS74911-2B will be with you shortly," answered the slightly shorter – the teensy height of seven feet – of the two guards. He had a pleasant, cultivated voice and spoke with a strong Oxford accent. "He is currently unable to attend, but will arrive as soon as he has finished dinner."

"Whoa, it talked!" Inu-yasha exclaimed, whereupon Kagome dug her elbow in his ribs, painfully, hissing at him not to be so rude.

There was a sound as of an explosion muffled by several layers of mud. It took them a while to realize that it was the taller guard laughing. "Yeah, I know," he rumbled. "Looks stupid, doesn't he? Shorty," he added contemptuously to his companion, who looked pained.

"Kindly do not use that name."

"Why not, Shorty?"

"I said kindly do not use that name."

"OK, fine then. ...Midget."

"YOU WANT TO SEE JUST HOW FAST A MIDGET CAN RIP YOUR THROAT OUT, HUH?!"

Inu-yasha and Kagome looked on in bemusement as the two guards leapt at each other, snarling and growling. A fist smashed into the wall beside them, which crumbled. Without a word to each other the two agents threw themselves into the little interrogation room, shutting and locking the door behind them.

"If those are the guards, what are the inmates in this part like?" panted Kagome.

"Trust me, it's better than in the women's block," said Inu-yasha, sitting down in one of the chairs in front of the wall. "That is really scary. I bet the bigger guy wins."

"Ten bucks against it," said Kagome. "Midget will kick arse out there."

"You've got yourself a wager, girl."

"My name is _Kagome_."

The door on the other side of the glass opened and in walked a very large ogre. He was wearing the standard prison pants but had no shirt – presumably the had been no size large enough. Leading up from his hands, parallel to his arms, were two large spikes and to add to his height – not that it needed adding to – were two horns.

_Jeez, what an ugly bastard_, thought Inu-yasha. _Only a mother could love that face. Hell, probably not even a mother, now that I think about it._

The ogre narrowed his eyes.

"You're not such a great looker yourself," he said, snorting derisively. Inu-yasha stared, mouthing stupidly.

"Yeah, I do read thoughts," said the ogre tiredly. "Name's Goshinki, by the way." He extended his hand and hit glass. He drew it back again, rolling his eyes. "Always forget that detail."

"Great, Goshinki," smiled Kagome, looking completely at her ease. "Do you know why we're here?"

"Well, duh, 'cos you're thinking about it, aren't you? You wanna know if I have a tattoo anywhere. Wait a second." Goshinki turned around, exposing his broad back to them, pointing between his shoulder blades with both hands. "Got a pretty spider right here."

"Where did you get that done?" asked Kagome.

"Kaijin-Bo did it for me. Did all of us."

"Can you specify who you mean with us?"

"Yeah, all the ones close to – oh no you don't." Goshinki glared at her, crossing his arms over his chest. "I can read thoughts, wench, thought I told you."

"Kagome. Not wench." Kagome smiled amiably. "Kagome Higurashi, and this is Inu-yasha. So you were close to Naraku, weren't you?"

"I'm not saying anything."

"But you were."

"How can you know?" Goshinki grinned. "Yeah, I see what you're thinking. Would be pretty good to be able to read thoughts now."

"You were going to tell me who your leader was, but when I thought about Naraku, you suddenly realized that you had said too much. Right? I'm no idiot, Goshinki. I know you were connected to him. What's the worst that can happen by you telling me?"

"Oh, nothing much, I'd just be cut open, flayed and used as a rug to warm Naraku's toes, all while I was still alive." Goshinki glowered at her, then widened his eyes. "Oops."

"Thank you," smiled Kagome. "Now that we're past that stage, how about you answer some questions?"

Goshinki snarled.

"Did you kidnap Kohaku on the orders of Naraku?"

"......"

"Ah, so you did. Were you betrayed by that same Naraku? Did he witness against you? Never helped you escape? Yes..." said Kagome quietly. "He is rather a bastard, isn't he?"

Goshinki bared his fangs, looking livid and disbelieving.

"What the hell is your magic?!" he asked, eyes wide with wonder. "Do you read minds, too?"

"Nah, she's just a damn good guesser," said Inu-yasha, smiling slightly. Goshinki didn't spare him a glance.

"Shut up, dog-breath." Inu-yasha sat up straighter and opened his mouth in outrage, but Goshinki just chuckled. "Yeah, I already know you think I'm an ugly sonofabitch. Come up with something new, will you?"

"Ogres," muttered Inu-yasha, snorting.

"Half-breeds," Goshinki retorted. He still hadn't removed his eyes from Kagome, and she was still smiling. Inu-yasha wondered why she didn't seem the least bit frightened of the large ogre, or at least a little unnerved by his relentless stare – he sure would have been scared if he'd been a short human female.

"Because there's this glass between us, see, stupid?" said Goshinki, knocking on the glass wall that connected their rooms. Inu-yasha bristled. This mind-reading business was reeeeally getting on his nerves.

"Just stay out of my head, you sad little wanker," he said hotly. "Don't you have anything better to do?"

"Don't flatter yourself," Goshinki replied coolly. "There's nothing so interesting in your mind that I would go there for fun."

"Do you know anything about Naraku's old girlfriend?" Kagome cut in quickly, interrupting the oncoming fight. Inu-yasha sighed, rolling his eyes. Another thing that was getting on his nerves.

"Well, she was – wait a minute." For the first time, Goshinki switched his attention to Inu-yasha for something other than to insult him, throwing a questioning glance in his direction. "Your ugly friend here's thinking you're bloody obsessed with that girl. Why?" He looked intently at Kagome, and sucked his breath in sharply, narrowing his eyes. "How can you block your mind like that?"

"That is a secret," said Kagome calmly. "It is not your business why I want to know more about someone. Can you tell me anything about her?"

"Didn't know her," said Goshinki sulkily. "She kept to herself and was abroad a lot. Not even me, Kagura or Kanna ever got to meet her. And yeah, we were Naraku's closest." He sighed, apparently resigning himself to fate. "You'll coax it all out of me anyway, I wouldn't be surprised. Kagura and Kanna both work at the club, but they have other jobs as well that I don't know much about. Kanna works with the administrative part of the club – she looks like a kid, but she's older than me and dead smart. Kagura works with the security. Both are right in the line of fire if the Spider Club ever gets visited by the police, but Naraku is of course freed. He gives all his orders by word, and leaves no clues. You will have a hard time if you're out to get him. Kagura tried to tape what he said once to give to the cops and get him felled – for that he almost had her killed, 'cos he found out of course. Her life hung in the balance for a long, long time. I didn't think I'd ever see her smile again... but she survived.

"Her trouble was that she became too independent. She doesn't need Naraku and she's tired of working for him. She wants to get him out of the way and go on with her own life. And no, I'm not in love with Kagura. She's my sister." Goshinki looked at Inu-yasha, who blushed. He then turned back to Kagome.

"That guy is a total loser, you know that, right? He's not your boyfriend, is he? You deserve much better than that."

"No, he's not my boyfriend," laughed Kagome. "God, everyone keeps asking me that. But he's not a total loser. I mean, he's got a Speed Demon." Kagome winked at Inu-yasha, who felt a bit better, but still not happy over being effectively shut out of the conversation as soon as – or even before – he opened his mouth, by that sonofa... sonofanogress.

"Tell us about Kohaku," said Kagome, and now she was not smiling. Goshinki wrinkled his eyebrows in confusion for a moment, then lit up as he understood.

"Oh, the kid. The one that landed me here! What do you want to know?"

"Why you kidnapped him. You said in court that it was for the ransom. Was that all?"

_What?_ thought Inu-yasha. _How does she know about the trial? Why would she have been there? That was a long time ago, before she got here..._

"How do you know about the trial?" asked Goshinki, with a quick glance at Inu-yasha. "That was long before you came to their agency."

"Background research."

"Silly me." Goshinki grinned, but looked at her carefully. "Well, what I said in the trial is partly true. It was a bit for the ransom, but also because the kid is a first-class thief. We wanted – well, Naraku wanted – to use him for robbery. Sneaking into rich people's houses. Did you know he'd absolutely rock as a criminal?"

"His sister is one of my best friends," Kagome answered with a smile. "I do know. But he is also a very honest person."

"Naraku was supposed to have some hold over the boy, Kagura said. Dunno what though."

"What was your part of the deal? What did Naraku promise you?" Goshinki looked up in surprise as he realized that it was Inu-yasha who had spoken.

"Hey, puppy-boy, you're not as stupid as you look!" he said, raising his eyebrows in a look of astonishment. "Well, if you were you'd probably be in a diaper. But it's still impressive. Go moron." He grinned at Inu-yasha, who grit his teeth.

"Can you just answer the question?"

"Sure, Mr. Moron. My part of the deal was to get both me and Kagura out of the circus. Quit at the club and go our own way. 'Cos you see, once you're in, it's hard to get out – that's how it is at the Spider Club."

"And then you got landed in prison instead," said Kagome, shaking her head. "Whoa, sucks to be you. What were you thinking about doing instead of the club?"

Goshinki shrugged.

"Something with less life sentences and more regular hours."

"You know what?" Kagome leant forward, smiling very mischievously. "I think I might know a job for you when you get out. I'm thinking about something with rather less life sentences... for you, that is. Maybe not very regular hours, but better than at the club, at least."

"What are you – " Goshinki looked at her, then started to laugh. "Oh no, you're kidding me. Dog-boy would kill me."

"Try it when you get out. They'll need you."

"Yeah, call me in seventy-six years." Goshinki snorted, then saw the confused expression on her face. "Demon terms, you know. We live longer than humans, so we have longer sentences."

"That can be fixed." Kagome smiled again, then stood up. "I think we have to go now. Think about what I offered you. It was nice talking to you and, er, thinking to you. We may drop by again sometime."

"I'll be looking forward to it. Especially to seeing you again, Dog Moron."

"I love you too."

"Oh yes, I almost forgot!" Kagome clapped her hands together. "Did you by any chance see two guards fighting right before you came in here? Could you see who had won?"

"Oh yeah, Shorty kicked arse as usual. He's the best fighter we've got around here," Goshinki answered. He paused and looked at Kagome, then turned towards Inu-yasha with a big grin on his face.

"Hey Dog-boy. I see you owe Kagome ten bucks."

....................

**elsiey and Midnight hanyou:** I'm not saying if you're right or not... 'cos if I'm not careful you'll both figure out the entire plot on before hand. Why are you so smart?! Now I'll go sulk...

...oh, and Midnight hanyou – about your question, I hand't planned on it. There's not really room for it... except for something depressingly small like a passing person on the street or something...

...I could make you a random hooker if you want...;)


	7. Unexpected visitor

Unexpected visitor

"That was the most unbelievable idiot I've ever met in my entire life!" Inu-yasha raged, kicking the wall outside their garage.

"Oh, I don't know..." said Kagome, with that dreamy expression he had come to recognize since she started at the agency. She started to walk up towards the apartment. "I thought he seemed rather bright."

"Yeah, 'cos he showered you with compliments. How could you fall for that?"

"Oh, quit being a moron." Kagome laughed easily, pulling on one of his ears. "You just don't like him because he made you feel like you were five years old and really, really stupid. Well, it's not weird – anyone would feel like a baby after having their inmost _thoughts_ attacked. He attacked you because you made him feel insecure, can't you see that? A cool, smart agent who comes waltzing in on his domain – you threatened him, and he reacted instinctively and defended himself by making you feel small."

Inu-yasha stared.

"Did you do psychology in school?"

"A little," laughed Kagome. "I'll try and teach you to block some thoughts if you want, so next time we go see Goshinki you won't have to worry quite as much about him reading your mind and making a fool out of you."

"As if I'd ever want to see that freak again," muttered Inu-yasha. Then something struck him. "Hey, what did you offer him, anyway?"

"Oh, nothing much," Kagome answered, opening the door to their apartment and stepping inside. She turned back towards him and suddenly smiled very devilishly. "Just a place in the agency."

"WHAT??!!!"

"Inu-yasha, please don't scream so much," said Sesshoumaru, coming out to them in the hallway. "It's most unpleasant."

"But she just went and offered a place in the agency to a bloody CRIMINAL, damn it!!! And she doesn't even have the authority!!!"

"Jesus, none of us has any authority," said Sesshoumaru calmly. "I'm sure that this person is a very reliable and worthy asset." He smiled at Kagome, who gave him her cutest and most innocent smile in return.

"Oh, I'm certain he will be," she said, casting a glance full of silent laughter at the furiously gaping Inu-yasha. Then she blinked, and looked around towards the kitchen. "Oh, you already ordered dinner, Sesshoumaru? Great timing!"

"Well, I thought you were going to call it a day and come in earlier, but then you disappeared again," Sesshoumaru answered, rubbing his neck in an almost embarrassed fashion. (What's up with him? thought Inu-yasha, feeling very puzzled.) "So I decided to use the time to try out something on my own..."

Kagome took a few steps into the kitchen and gasped when she saw the food that stood on the table – marinated chicken and pasta – and the empty saucepans and bowls that littered the sink.

"Wow, Sesshoumaru!" she exclaimed, her eyes sparkling. "Did you really cook this yourself? That's fantastic! It looks great!"

"It wasn't that hard, actually," said Sesshoumaru with an air of nonchalance. "I just followed the recipe. Although I don't think I'd want to do it every day..."

"Well, I can't wait to see if tastes as good as it looks!" smiled Kagome. "I'll just drop my stuff in my room, won't be a sec. OK?" The other two nodded and she hastened off. As soon as she was out of earshot Inu-yasha leaned towards his brother and muttered,

"Pedersen family, _'We cook if you pay us'_?"

"One mention of the word "catering firm" and you're dead."

""Catering firm" is two words, actually."

"The threat still stands."

Inu-yasha sighed, shaking his head in disbelief. "Jeez, you really use every trick in the book. I mean, how low will you go to impress a girl?"

"All's fair in rivalry and war," smirked Sesshoumaru.

"What rivalry?" asked Inu-yasha fiercely, going slightly pink. "I don't recall ever saying I was even interested!"

"Well then..." Sesshoumaru stretched and looked at his brother with a half challenging, half triumphant smile. "That leaves the field free for me, doesn't it?"

"You are such a player. You twisted bastard."

"Ooh, you are _so_ jealous."

The dinner was of course absolutely delicious. _That Pedersen family really knows their stuff_, thought Inu-yasha as he ate, all the while cursing his sad mistake of a brother. Kagome would not stop praising Sesshoumaru, who shrugged the compliments off casually but at the same time managed to convey an air of charming, modest pride and gratitude. He made Inu-yasha sick to the stomach.

Thankfully – Inu-yasha thought, he couldn't have stood another compliment to his brother without going insane – Kagome's phone rang just after they had finished eating.

"Sorry guys," she said, smiling apologetically. "Gotta take this. Think it's the old boss."

"That's quite alright," said Inu-yasha quickly. "Take as much time as you want. Since Sesshoumaru now knows how to cook food, he and I are going to practise cleaning up after us."

"Swine," said Sesshoumaru under his breath, making Inu-yasha grin victoriously. Kagome lifted the phone.

"Kagome Higurashi... what? _Sota??_ Why are _you_ calling me now? No, that's not what I mean! Hell yeah, have I wanted to talk to you? Are you kidding? God, I can't believe you finally call me! What's up?" Sesshoumaru and Inu-yasha looked at each other. Kagome was bouncing up and down on her toes, laughing, and looked extremely happy over hearing from the person on the other end of the line. _Boyfriend?!_ mouthed Sesshoumaru. Inu-yasha shrugged.

"What was that?" said Kagome, putting her free hand over the ear without the phone. "Bad connection, you know... say what? Yeah sure you can come and visit!"

"Oh goody," said a voice. All three in the room turned around instantly. A young man who looked a few years Kagome's junior was just climbing in through the kitchen window. He had a cell phone in his hand and was grinning like a Cheshire cat.

"SOTA!!!" Kagome flew across the room and threw herself in the man's arms. "I've missed you so much! God, why did I ever leave you..." She straightened up suddenly and looked at him critically, her brows furrowed. "You've lost weight, haven't you?"

"Jeez, you say that every time," sighed the man called Sota, then looked with interest at the other two occupants of the room. "Are these the two brothers you've written so much about?"

"Yeah, this is Sesshoumaru, and Inu-yasha." Kagome pointed to them in turn. "And guys, this is Sota. My dear, beloved – " Sesshoumaru sighed, signing defeat "– little brother." Sesshoumaru perked up again.

"Well, that's excellent!" he said, smiling charmingly at the man. "Let's go into the living room, shall we? I'm sure you have a lot to tell your sister." There was a small emphasis on the last word, but Inu-yasha didn't think anyone other than him noticed. They followed Sesshoumaru's advice and sat down together in the living room, Inu-yasha wondering a little about what the hell he was supposed to be doing there.

"I'm sure you have lost weight," said Kagome worriedly as she took a seat next to Sota in the large sofa. "You look thin."

"Gods, it's enough with mom bothering me, don't you start too," said Sota, but he was smiling.

"Well, it's important! You gotta eat, how many times will I have to tell you that? Do you have enough money? Do you get enough jobs?"

"I get by." Sota shrugged. "Plenty of stuff last week. Had a few jobs for the police the week before though, that really sucks. They don't pay, you know. Say I should be happy they don't take me in. They don't hesitate to use my services though... This country is so bloody corrupt."

"If it isn't rude to ask..." said Inu-yasha carefully, "what do you do for a living?"

Sota fell quiet and looked questioningly at Kagome, who smiled.

"Sota is a Thief," she said, looking Inu-yasha straight in the eyes. "He _steals_ for a living."

There was a very short pause in which Inu-yasha realized he was being put to some test. He wasn't sure of what it was though.

"Pay well?" he asked, looking at Sota. From the corner of his eye he saw Kagome relax and understood that he had passed the test.

Whatever it was.

"When I get good customers," Sota replied. "A good job with a decent percentage gives me quite a lot. But like I said before, there are weeks when I get nothing but lousy jobs and then it's not fun working five to nine. There have been times when I thought of giving it up and getting myself a desk job somewhere, but I like stealing. I do it partly for the rush." He paused and looked from Inu-yasha to Sesshoumaru with an amused look in his eyes. "Well here I am, telling two agents what it's like being a thief. I must say, I'm impressed. You don't even seem surprised."

"Look at what I have for a brother and you'll see I'm not a stranger to weird occupations," said Sesshoumaru, indicating Inu-yasha. "You don't want me to go into the list of what he did before I picked him up for the YSA."

"Really? You never told me you had a lot of funny jobs before," said Kagome, looking at Inu-yasha and grinning.

"He's exaggerating," said Inu-yasha shortly, and glared at his elder brother, warning him that one more word would mean his slow and painful death. Sesshoumaru took the hint, looking innocently up into the ceiling and twiddling his thumbs.

"Forget that I said anything, Kagome," he said. "I was lying, of course."

"Sure you were," grinned Kagome. "Well Sota, do you have any news for me about this case? He gets around a lot in his line of work (duh), so he's my most faithful source of information," she explained to the others.

"Well, yes... on the Naraku case, was it?" asked Sota, looking intensely at his sister.

"Exactly. Naraku." Kagome widened her eyes ever so slightly, so slightly that it would not have been noticed by someone who was not looking extremely carefully for anything the least suspicious.

Which, of course, Inu-yasha was. And so he noticed it, like he noticed the barely visible nod from Sota. The siblings were holding a silent conversation, trying to hide what they wanted said. Inu-yasha, however, could tell what they were saying as easily as if they had been speaking out loud: _don't take all the information now. You'll have to tell me the rest later. _

Once again he wondered what Kagome was hiding.

"Well, not much more than you already have, I guess..." Sota sighed and leaned back in the sofa, running a hand through his hair. "He's a tricky one, alright. Think I did a job for him once, although I can't be sure of that, of course. It was in some government building, and was for some search orders of the Spider Club. Everything was handled over phone, a cell phone of course."

"If you tattled, the police wouldn't have been able to trace the calls," said Inu-yasha.

"Exactly. Smart and efficient. I have found out something about him though: he's currently out of the loop, having been almost killed by our... by a priestess." The change in mid-sentence made Inu-yasha frown. By our what?

"So what's he doing?" asked Sesshoumaru.

"Creating a new body," answered Sota, smiling when he saw the other's nonplussed expression. "He is practically immortal, you know. The last remaining Frankenstein descendant died a while ago – I know because I removed some important papers from her house while they were busy with her funeral... they are currently in the possession of a Chinese business man in Germany... anyway, since the Frankenstein family line is now ended he had to use some other way of finding himself a new body. So I think he has been setting up a poison imp spell somewhere."

"That's disgusting," said Kagome, wrinkling her nose. "The demons kill each other only to finally become someone else's body. It's cruel murder."

"Another reason to throw his sorry ass in jail," said Inu-yasha casually. "Any idea of where the spell has been taking place?"

"Don't even know if he is using the poison imp spell," said Sota, shrugging his shoulders. "But if he is, it'll be in some large, unused storage house of some sort. Don't think you'll have much luck there though. He's bound to have his new body any day now."

"Anything on the Shikon deal, Sota?" asked Kagome.

"Not much." Sota shrugged again. "It's big alright, though. The whole damn country is talking about it, all the way up in Boston."

"Oh, you live in Boston?" asked Sesshoumaru. Inu-yasha looked at Kagome and saw that she had bit her lip, hard, and was staring at Sota.

"Oh no, we live in – " Sota glanced at Kagome and hesitated.

"New York," said Kagome, smiling brightly. "Although I move so often it's hard to say "we" anymore, right Sota?"

"Exactly," said Sota. "_I_ live in New York anyway, even if my silly sis here never stays in the same place for three months at a time. She gets reassigned all the time. Anyway, the reason I know the rumours go all the way to Boston is that I collected some nice church silver from there not long ago."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," said Inu-yasha, frowning. "Wait a minute. I don't think there's anything wrong with your job, don't get me wrong, but there are things you just don't do! Not that I'm religious or anything, but you can't rob a church!"

"What kind of person do you think I am?" asked Sota, looking horrified. "I would _never_ do something like that!"

"Good."

"I robbed the priest, of course."

¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨

Sorry for taking so long to update this. Our computer's been sulky for a while...

**elsiey:** I know, isn't Goshinki cool? I kind of fell in love with him while I was writing this. Sadly, I don't think I'll be able to fit much more of him in... I miss him already...:( Anyway, glad to see you're still following the story!

**Harei sky:** Wow, new name! :) I wondered who it was first...:P

**Inu-yasha'smistress:** Tee-hee, I'm glad you liked Goshinki, 'cos I do, too. :)

**AngeloflLight:** Kikyo is miss Miko, yeah. I'm sorry if I confused you, but the reason I've called her miss Miko through the entire story is that Inu-yasha and the others are more formal when speaking to her. It would not do to call her by her first name.


	8. Late evening and crazy morning

Late evening and crazy morning

They offered Sota a bed for the night, but he declined, saying that he had a borrowed apartment to get to. (The Thieves' Unofficial Trade Union, TUTU, had apartments in every large American city, for the use of any thief in need.) He left through the window, declaring that doors made him feel uneasy. He was already sitting on the windowsill when he turned his head to smile at his sister.

"Oh and Kagome, did I say that Hojo told me to say hi?"

"Who's Hojo?" asked Sesshoumaru and Inu-yasha simultaneously.

"Hasn't she told you?" asked Sota brightly, oblivious to the murderous glare from his sister. "Hojo is Kagome's boyf– mmf!"

"He's had a speech defect since he was very young," smiled Kagome, not removing her hand from where she had it firmly pressed against her brother's mouth. "You don't want to take everything he says seriously. Anyway, I'm sure Sota has to leave now, doesn't he? Of course he does. Bye Sota!" She gave him a good push and waved cheerily as he dropped down from their window, waving his arms madly and making a very rude gesture at her. The others rushed to the window – their apartment was on the fifth floor after all – only to see the young man stretch out a hand and grab a ledge two floors down.

"Maniac!" he yelled. Kagome stuck out her tongue in reply. He made a face and pushed off from the wall with his legs and then, suddenly, he was gone.

"What the – " Sesshoumaru began.

"Well, I'm not sure how he does it," grinned Kagome, "but isn't it impressive?" She turned and looked at the table. "Silly bugger forgot his phone."

"Did not." Sota's head appeared in the window, hanging upside down. Sesshoumaru and Inu-yasha started, screamed like girls and jumped away from him. He looked mildly alarmed. "I was going to get it but someone – hint, hint, sis – pushed me out of the window." He stretched down his hands and grabbed a hold of the upper window frame, then easily swung himself into the room.

"Sota, don't do that," Kagome frowned, retrieving the phone from the table and giving it to him. "You know you scare people when you do your stunts."

"Sorry." Sota scratched his head, looking a bit ashamed of himself. "Won't do it again. Anyway, I'll be leaving now, so if you two think it's scary just... just close your eyes or something, 'kay?"

"If you two think it's scary..." muttered Inu-yasha, then screamed again as Sota flipped upside-down, doing a handstand on their windowsill, and the second after zoomed upwards, feet first.

"Oh really," sighed Kagome. "Now you're just being silly. Make an example of your brother, he sure isn't screaming like that."

"That would be because he is unconscious."

Kagome frowned, walked over to Sesshoumaru and gave him a few good kicks in the side. He didn't even stir.

"You're right," she said, shrugging. "You wake him up then and I'll go make us coffee.

When Inu-yasha had gotten Sesshoumaru – who claimed that the reason for him passing out was that he hit his head on the window frame, or something – back on his feet and they both had had some coffee poured inside them, Kagome was pressured to tell them what she knew about Sota's seemingly inhuman way of moving up and down walls. Once again, Inu-yasha thought she seemed uneasy.

"I really have no idea how he does it," she said. "He has lots of different gadgets and things, but I don't know how they work. You'll have to ask him next time you see him."

"But that was impossible!" said Sesshoumaru, who was rather pale. "He had to be using magic to move like that!"

"Well, maybe there was a touch of magic there, I don't know..." Kagome laughed (Nervously? thought Inu-yasha). "Can't understand where he would have got that from though. No one in our family has ever had magic before." She yawned and stretched, leaning back in her chair. "How about we go to bed? I don't know about you, Sesshoumaru, but we've got to get up early to see Jinenji." She shot a glance at Inu-yasha, who stifled a groan. He'd been hoping she wouldn't remember that.

"Sure. What time will you be home tomorrow?" asked Sesshoumaru.

"Don't know," Inu-yasha answered. "Why?"

"I invited miss Miko over for dinner."

There was a loud CRASH! as Kagome's chair toppled and she fell, landing in a flurry and breaking her coffee cup. She jumped up quickly again and stared at Sesshoumaru, while Inu-yasha did the same, his cheeks turning pink.

"You did WHAT?!" they exclaimed together.

"Invited miss Miko over for dinner," said Sesshoumaru calmly. "To tell her the proceedings of the case. That's why I need you to be here. So don't make it a very late day, alright?"

"Have you told her my name?" asked Kagome. She had picked up her chair from the floor and was now gripping the back so hard her knuckles were white.

"No, I don't think so..." Sesshoumaru frowned thoughtfully. "Oh wait, I did, now that I think about it. She asked who were handling the case and I told her it was my brother and our new agent. She was very interested when she heard we had a new one, and wanted to know all about you, Kagome. That's why I suggested the dinner, so you could get to know each other. Are you feeling alright, Kagome?"

Kagome had relaxed when Sesshoumaru said he hadn't told miss Miko her name, but was now chalk white.

"What? Oh, yes..." she said distractedly, letting go of the chair. "I... I have to go and make a phone call."

"Do so, then." Sesshoumaru nodded and then, just before she was out of earshot, smiled mischievously and turned to his brother. "And what are you blushing for, Inu-yasha? Don't worry, I'm sure miss Miko won't snub you again."

"She didn't snub me," said Inu-yasha automatically, and saw Kagome's shoulders tighten before she slammed the door behind her. He cursed silently and turned to his brother. "What the hell did you have to go and say that for, huh?"

"Don't want Kagome to know you like miss Miko?" asked Sesshoumaru innocently, smirking. "Why on earth not?"

"That's not it!" snarled Inu-yasha, feeling that Sesshoumaru had hit the spot exactly. "You are just so... so... and I don't like miss Miko anyway!"

"Of course not."

...........................

Inu-yasha went to bed seething with anger and feeling that his elder brother ought to be slowly fried in vegetable oil and given to the alley cats for breakfast. What made him the most angry was the fact that Sesshoumaru had managed to see – as he always did – that Inu-yasha was interested in miss Miko. _Well, not interested as such_, he told himself, _merely, well, a little bit intrigued by her. Oh, am I a bad liar._

He wasn't actually sure of why he didn't want Kagome to know that.

He heard her talking to someone on the phone as he passed her room, but didn't dare to eavesdrop. He had a feeling that if she caught him doing that he might not survive to see tomorrow. She had seemed in a pretty bad mood.

He undressed, waded across to his bed and lay down, put his arms under his head and looked up into the ceiling, fuming silently. Sesshoumaru had made him wash up, too, the bastard.

_What's up with Kagome?_ he asked himself, as he heard her step out of her room and into the bathroom. _What is she? She knows lots of people here, yet she lives in New York. Or says she lives in New York... She seemed to know both Sango and Miroku very well, and Yura had seen her as well, when she helped with the stripper serial murders. But the CIA wasn't in on that case, was it? I'm sure they weren't. So why was she there? She's so damn confusing..._

And then there was all that business just now. When she heard that miss Miko was coming over she seemed terrified. He suddenly recalled Sesshoumaru's words when he first persuaded Inu-yasha to let Kagome stay with them, "...perhaps she is a criminal, pretending to be from the CIA while she is in fact plotting the downfall of our agency?" _Maybe she is a criminal of some sorts and has had a run-in with miss Miko before? he thought. After all, she has a brother who is a thief... _

She kept asking questions about something that wasn't even connected to their case – Naraku's girlfriend, who cared about her? (Well, Kagome did, obviously, but why?) She had a strange power that enabled her to block her mind to Goshinki, who read Inu-yasha, a demon, like an open book. She seemed to have lots of different names – Sango called her Trix, Miroku called her Kyoko. Inu-yasha didn't care what Sesshoumaru said about it, giving it all quite natural explanations, because he still thought it was suspicious.

She was no ordinary girl, that much was for sure.

With the confused thoughts still whirling in his head like unanswerable riddles, Inu-yasha went to sleep.

He woke up in the middle of the night after dreaming about deserts, and realized that he needed something to drink, fast, if he didn't want to die from dehydration. He fell out of his bed, which wasn't a very high drop seeing as his floor was littered with so much clothes and stuff that it was now almost level with the bed. He ambled out to the kitchen to get a glass of water, feeling that his room needed a serious spring cleaning. Or several serious spring cleanings, one after the other.

As he put the glass in the sink – leaving its washing-up to Sesshoumaru – he heard a strange noise from the living room. He poked his head into the room and saw Kagome sitting on the floor, leaning against the sofa, with her elbows propped up on her knees and her face resting in her hands.

She was crying.

"What's wrong?" he asked quietly, and she looked up in alarm. He walked over to the sofa and sat down beside her, gazing seriously at her. She gulped, rubbing her eyes with her fists, and then smiled weakly.

"Oh, I'm just being silly," she whispered, looking down at her hands and sniffling slightly. "I get these depressions sometimes. It's hard to explain... everything just collects... It's nothing special that's happened, it's just...tough, right now, right here."

"Nothing I can do?"

"You can stay."

She spoke so softly that he was at first unsure if he had heard correctly, but then he reached out and put an arm around her shoulders, patting her back awkwardly. She sniffled a little and dried her eyes once more.

"Was it something about Sota?" asked Inu-yasha carefully. "Or your family and friends back in... back in New York?"

"No, it's just me being silly, like I said," smiled Kagome, twisting her hands together in her lap. He nodded, seeing that whatever it was that had made her upset, it wasn't something she wanted to tell him about. Well, that was something he'd have to respect.

"Do you mind me being here?" she asked suddenly, looking very deliberately away from him. "Or do you just hate it? Because I could work on my own instead."

"What?" Was this why she had been crying? "Of course I don't mind you working with us! It's a real asset, having you here!"

"Really?" asked Kagome in a very small voice, still looking anywhere but at him.

"Really." He squeezed her shoulder, shaking her slightly to show how stupid he thought she was behaving. "You're a great person, and a wonderful agent. And you're great fun to be with. I'm really happy you came to work with us. Is this why you were crying, you little idiot?"

"No... Well, OK, partly. I just felt so alone all of a sudden... and then I came into one of these depressive states and once you start feeling sorry for yourself it's very easy to just keep getting more and more depressed and think that everybody hates you and you do nothing right and you're just a nuisance..." She looked up at him and saw that his face was locked in an expression of utter bemusement. "I take it you've never felt like that?"

"When I feel down," he said, "I go "Hey! Sesshoumaru, come here!" and then I bash his nose in and feel much better." He smiled when she began laughing, tapping her on the nose. "Cheered you up. Stop this nonsense now, 'kay? We all like you. Hell, half the guys in the agency are in love with you already!" He smirked at her blushing, then snapped his fingers. "I know – we need a break. You're probably stressed out. What do you say we find a pub or something tomorrow? I'll pull the guys together, so you can meet the rest of the agency. About time, right?"

"Right..." Kagome smiled, her eyes closed. "That sounds... nice."

She yawned, then rested her head on his shoulder, leaning against him. He inhaled, and caught a whiff of her scent. It was a nice scent.

_Calming, but at the same time... exciting? She can't possibly be an infiltrator..._ He hit himself mentally. _God, how stupid is that! Just because she smells nice she has to be a good person?! You need to get a hold of your dog-side, Inu-yasha... Maybe I should just ask her._

"Uh, Kagome?"

"Mm?"

"Like I said, I really like you... you're a wonderful person... but what is it that you do, really?" He got no reply, and hastened to explain himself further. "I mean, you've probably seen that I've been watching you rather closely, and maybe that's why you thought I hated you or something. But it's just my suspicious mind playing up. I start thinking these stupid thoughts, like you're some kind of criminal who's here pretending to be a CIA agent but in fact you're just trying to get information... it sounds really stupid now that I'm saying it out loud. But there are some things I just don't understand about you..." Still she said nothing, so he turned his head and looked at her.

She was asleep.

_Alright, so I won't get an answer tonight_, he thought, sighing to himself. _Never mind. Guess I'll find out the truth about her sooner or later._ He stroked some hair out of her face, inhaling again that gentle scent of hers. He ought to go back to bed now, really, but on the other hand... it was kind of nice just to sit there.

_And anyway, I can't just wake her up now_, he thought, smiling to himself in an embarrassed fashion. _I'll just sit here for a little while longer..._

............................

Koga rang the doorbell and knocked hard on the door, repeatedly. When this brought no reaction he tried the handle and found that the door was open.

_Sesshoumaru probably left it open so I could let myself in then. Typical lazy bastard... I'll get a bucket of water in the kitchen and wake him up._ Grinning evilly to himself, Koga walked into the apartment. He never got to the kitchen however, because he stopped short at the sight that presented itself to him in the living room.

Inu-yasha and Kagome were sitting beside each other on the floor with their backs leaning against the sofa. Inu-yasha had his arm around Kagome's shoulders, and was leaning his head on hers. She was curled up on her side, with her cheek resting against his bare chest and her arm wrapped around his waist. She was dressed in her singlet-and-shorts pyjamas, and he was only wearing a pair of pyjama trousers. Both appeared to be asleep.

For a long while Koga simply stared. Then he walked over to the pair, crouched down beside Inu-yasha and started tickling his ear with a blade of grass from the flower arrangement on the table. Inu-yasha's ear twitched once, then again and again, but when the relentless tickling just continued his eyelids fluttered and he stirred. With a groan he opened his eyes and – with a great deal of effort – got them uncrossed and focused on Koga's face.

"'Lo," he said indistinctly.

"Good morning," Koga replied. "And what a very good morning it seems to be for you. You finally scored then, did you?"

"Guh?" asked Inu-yasha, looking blearily at his friend, then followed Koga's gaze down to what was resting against his chest, namely, Kagome. He yelled in surprise and took his arm away as if she had burned him.

"Mm..." said Kagome, hugging him tighter with a dreamy smile on her face. Then she opened her eyes, looking straight into Koga's. She frowned, and her gaze travelled upwards to meet Inu-yasha's. She let him go quickly and sat up, looking very embarrassed.

"Whoops," she said, putting her hand over her mouth to hide a smile. "I thought you were my teddy bear. What am I doing here? What are _you_ doing here?"

Koga's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"What do you think you're doing, Inu-yasha?" he asked, growling deep in his throat. He clenched his hands, but before he had time to do anything rash Kagome clapped her hands together and exclaimed,

"Oh yes, I remember – we were talking. I fell asleep then?" She looked at Inu-yasha, who nodded numbly, casting a nervous glance at Koga. He had had earlier experiences of his friend's punches. They had not been pleasant. Kagome seemed to notice his worry, because she turned to the wolf demon, smiling brightly. "What on _earth_ were you thinking about your friend here, Koga? Did you think he had done something he wasn't supposed to? _Shame_ on you. Do you have that little faith in Inu-yasha? And anyway... do I look like the kind of girl who someone can force himself on?" She laughed easily and jumped up, taking a look at her watch. Inu-yasha groaned.

"Let me guess – we have to get going?"

"Of course we do!" Kagome said, smiling cheekily at him. "We are really late! I'll go get dressed, see you out here in ten minutes sharp." She skipped off, humming happily to herself. Inu-yasha groaned again.

"Don't you think there ought to be some penalty on that kind of morning temper?" he asked, turning towards Koga, and suddenly found himself with the other's hand wrapped around his throat, pressing very uncomfortably against his windpipe.

"If you hurt that girl," hissed Koga, his voice deep and menacing, "I swear I will knock your head off."

Inu-yasha's eyes widened in surprise.

"Koga, what the _hell_ – "

"Feh," snorted the wolf demon and abruptly let him go. He then stood up and walked to the kitchen door. Just before he was about to go in he turned around again and fixed Inu-yasha with a stare that promised if not murder, then at least serious physical harm. "I'm serious," he said. "Touch her and you'll have me to deal with." With that he walked into the kitchen, leaving Inu-yasha to wonder if his so-called friend had gone completely mad.

_I mean what the hell..._

He looked at his watch, cursed and ran to his room, feeling that there ought to be a penalty on getting up before eleven o'clock as well. God, they had to be the only ones who went to work on a Saturday... Exactly seven minutes later he stumbled into the hall to find Kagome waiting for him with a huge smile on her face.

"You made the time limit," she said, and laughed when he groaned, rubbing his eyes to chase away the last of sleep. "Did you see where Koga went? I thought we might tell him about tonight. We're going to the pub, remember?" she added as she noticed the very confused expression on his face. He was just about to reply that he didn't know where Koga had disappeared to and that he didn't really give a damn because the moron seemed as if he had just lost his sanity, when there was an enraged howl from the other end of the apartment, followed by a yell in what was unmistakably Sesshoumaru's voice.

"You filthy son of a BITCH!"

Inu-yasha smirked.

"Ten bucks on that we'll find him in Sesshoumaru's bedroom," he said, but Kagome was already running towards the noise.

They arrived at Sesshoumaru's room to find him with Koga in a headlock. He was soaking through and through, and there was an empty bucket next to his bed. Koga was looking very satisfied with himself – well, as satisfied as one can look when one's head is in danger of getting twisted off one's shoulders.

"Well, isn't that nice," said Kagome, biting her lip to hold back her laughter. "I like it when men can show their feelings like this and don't be ashamed of giving each other a hug. Isn't it sweet, Inu-yasha?"

Sesshoumaru instantly let go of Koga, who jumped to his feet and put his hands in front of his chest as protection.

"This disgusting _worm_," Sesshoumaru spat, aiming a vicious kick at Koga's stomach, which the other dodged without too much trouble, "thought it was a _great_ idea to empty a bucket of water over my head while I was asleep. If you two don't mind I'd like to get back to flogging his miserable hide now. Have a nice day." He flexed his hand, cracking the knuckles and making Koga look very, very worried. Inu-yasha laughed.

"Do you mind waiting until after tonight?" he asked, glancing at Kagome. "We're going to the pub. I was thinking it's about time Kagome met all the rest of the guys. Right?"

"Of course, you're right," smiled Sesshoumaru after a short pause, suddenly back to his normal, civil self. Koga relaxed visibly. "But had you forgotten that we were supposed to be dining with miss Miko this very night?"

"Aw damn!" said Inu-yasha, frowning in disappointment. "What an idiot I am! We'll just have to change it to another day then..."

"However," said Sesshoumaru, smiling yet more broadly, "you're in luck. She sent me a message yesterday and asked me to change the date to Monday instead. So tonight we're free for a night at the pub, if you'd like. I think it's a great idea."

"Really?" Inu-yasha perked up. He didn't often get told that his ideas were "great" by his big brother. "Well then, how about The Three-eyed Bull, eight o'clock? I'll get it round to everybody."

"I'll be there," said Koga. Inu-yasha looked hard at him, and saw that he seemed to be edging towards the door, step by slow step. He grinned, signalling that when he and Kagome left the room, Koga could lose Sesshoumaru's attention by joining them on the way out. Koga gave him a look of utmost gratitude.

"Perfect," said Sesshoumaru. "See you tonight, then."

"Bye!" said Kagome cheerily, and she and Inu-yasha left the room, closely followed by Koga. They had gone about five paces down the corridor when Sesshoumaru's voice was heard again.

"And just where do you think you're going, Koga?"

"Shit," said the wolf demon, and ran for it.

........................... 

Sorry, I know I suck, I'll be better in the future. And try to update more often than every fourteen days or whatever it's become...:)

**elsiey:** Yeah, I know Sota's a little bit OOC, but I kind of like him as a thief...:)

**Harei sky:** I don't really have space at the moment... I don't think I have a single free character with an actual line... I'll try to keep a space open though. ;)

**AngeloflLight:** Talking of pages, you won't believe how many pages this story is turning into... it's the longest I've ever written I think...

**Inu-yasha'smistress:** Sesshy's a what?


	9. At the airport

At the airport

"So this Jinenji guy we're seeing, he used to work with you?" asked Kagome as they whizzed down the streets on Inu-yasha's baby, a.k.a. Speed Demon. "But now he's a copper. How did that happen?"

"Jinenji is the nicest guy in the entire world," answered Inu-yasha, turning into a one-way street and cursing when the drivers coming from the other end shouted at him. "Jeez, could you be a _little_ more stuffed-up, damn morons! Anyway, Jinenji just wasn't harsh enough for the kind of work we do. He's more of a "follow-the-law" – whereas we feel are made to be broken," Kagome filled in. "Got it. My sentiments exactly, by the way. That's why I became a... why I started at the CIA."

"Oh really?" said Inu-yasha, frowning to himself. "I didn't know the CIA had such a relaxed attitude when it came to rules."

"My... uh... branch has."

"And what branch – " Inu-yasha began, but Kagome appeared not to have heard, quickly asking another question.

"How are we going to find him? Jinenji, I mean."

"Well, he's on his morning beat now," answered Inu-yasha, wondering if she really hadn't heard him or if she'd just wanted to avoid the question. "So we're simply going to cruise around this neighbourhood for a while, 'cos this is where he's on patrol, and see if we run into him. I lost his phone number, stupid great idiot that I am, so if we don't see him here we'll have to go home to his mum... hope it doesn't come to that."

"He lives at home?!" Kagome let out a snort of laughter. "How old is this guy?"

"Nah, he doesn't live with his mother," laughed Inu-yasha. "I meant that she has his number, so we could get it from her. But if we can avoid it, I don't really want to go to her. She is reeeeally scary."

"Why?"

"Don't want to tell you."

"Aw, come on."

"No."

"Why not?"

"It's embarrassing."

"Go on – oh shit. Stop!" Kagome pulled on his sleeve and pointed towards a street corner, where a large, bulky man was bending threateningly over an old lady with her hands full of shopping bags. Inu-yasha pulled the motorbike to a screeching halt, leapt off and ran towards them, with Kagome right behind him. However, instead of pulling out his handcuffs or attacking the guy, Inu-yasha merely punched the man in the shoulder in a friendly fashion, laughing. Kagome stopped short in her tracks, staring.

"Morning, Jinenji!" said Inu-yasha, shaking the other's hand. "How are you doing?"

"Very well, thank you," answered the man, giving his old friend a slow smile. "And how are things in the agency?"

"Dead without you, mate," grinned Inu-yasha. "What are you up to right now?"

"Just helping Mrs Dahlin here find her glasses. You can get home on your own then, ma'am?"

"Yes thank you, officer," cackled the old woman, blinking up at Jinenji and giving him a big, toothless grin. "You have a nice day, officer, and your friends too."

Kagome looked on as Mrs Dahlin took one of Jinenji's large hands in her own, thanking him for the help, and then took her leave, waving cheerily at them. She felt ashamed of herself for believing that Jinenji had been attacking the old lady – up close he proved to be a very sweet person with a very gentle smile, one she couldn't believe would hurt so much as a fly. Also, when she took her time to regard him properly she saw that he was wearing uniform – not something you'd find on the average thug on the street. However, she saw the muscles in his arms and noted the broad shoulders, thinking that if he wanted, he sure had the power to hurt people.

"Kagome, come on," said Inu-yasha, waving her to him. "Meet Jinenji, my old partner. And Jinenji, this is Kagome Higurashi, my... my _new_ partner, actually. Old partner – new partner. Kagome was transferred from the CIA in Washington for a new case of ours," he added for Jinenji's benefit. "It's about Naraku and the Shikon deal. You haven't heard anything about it?"

"Can't say that I have," said Jinenji, carefully taking Kagome's hand in his. "Pleasure to meet you, miss Higurashi."

"Oh, do call me Kagome," she answered, smiling broadly. "Miss Higurashi makes me feel so old. I've heard a lot about you, Jinenji, from Inu-yasha, mainly. I'm happy to finally meet you. How long have you been in the police force?"

"Oh, it's a couple of months now. I'm very happy here, especially on nice morning shifts like these. Helping pleasant people like Mrs Dahlin is what makes the job worthwhile."

"Always knew it'd be better for you as a cop," grinned Inu-yasha. "So, don't you know anything about Naraku?"

"I'm sorry," said Jinenji, shrugging his shoulders. "He's a hard one to catch. They've been suspicious of him for years, but there's no proof of any illegal activity. You might as well try catching an eel, he's so slippery. And I don't even know what the Shikon deal is. Enlighten me, why don't you."

"Alright," smiled Inu-yasha. "The Shikon deal is the largest drug deal in history yet, if our contacts are to be believed. It's run by a woman and supposedly connected to Naraku. We got the case from some hotshot lawyer firm who said they'd been trying to get at Naraku forever. They wanted proof that he's connected to the deal, so that's what we're out to get now."

Jinenji frowned. "That sounds strange..." he said slowly. "It's a funny way for a lawyer firm to behave."

"What? You've been a copper too long," said Inu-yasha, raising an eyebrow and grinning. "See criminals everywhere. Give it a rest. I think you need a break. Are you free tonight?"

"Depends on what you want..." Jinenji smiled, apparently agreeing with Inu-yasha that he was a little too suspicious.

"Then you're joining us at the pub," said Inu-yasha firmly. "All the guys in the agency are coming, it'll be great to see them all again, right? They all miss you, you know."

"I'll try to get off then. I have a lot of boring paperwork about an illegal immigration last Tuesday, but I'll get it done somehow. That was nasty, actually – this girl hijacked an entire aircraft coming from Japan. She forced the crew to stay behind and simply stole the aeroplane. It was a storage plane, beats me what she'd want it for... they found the cargo later, stashed in a corner of the Japanese airport, so she hadn't even stolen that. Then she flew the plane here, unloaded it, cold as ice, and disappeared. No one's seen her since she drove off in a small car full of boxes – presumably to keep up the belief that she had brought the cargo from Japan. It's a real mystery – we have no idea what her motive was. It's stamped as illegal immigration simply because we didn't know what to charge her with otherwise."

"Why didn't the crew warn the people at the airport here?" asked Kagome.

"They had been put under some kind of spell. They couldn't remember anything about this woman – what she looked like, what she wore or even what language she was speaking."

"Yet they remembered that she was a woman... how clever," said Kagome softly. Inu-yasha glanced at her and saw that she was wearing that glazed look which signalled that she was thinking hard about something. He waved a hand in front of her face.

"You think of something, Kagome?"

"Huh?" Kagome looked up at him, eyes shining. "Don't you see? It must have been connected to the Shikon deal. She stole a plane, unloaded the cargo and stashed the drugs instead! It all makes sense! We know how the stuff got here. Now all we have to find is where it went, and whodunnit."

"Easy-peasy, in other words," said Inu-yasha sarcastically. "But you're right, we'll see what we can find at the airport. We might dig out some Clues. Or something."

"What did you mean when you said it was... clever that they remembered she was a woman?" asked Jinenji, gazing intently at Kagome with his eyes slightly narrowed. She looked uncomprehending for a few seconds, then shrugged.

"I did? Don't know why. Must have been thinking about something else. You know what, Inu-yasha? I reckon we should go to the airport now."

"Alright, sure. Jinenji, it's eight o'clock sharp at The Three-eyed Bull – don't miss it. And thanks for the help!"

"Any day, Inu-yasha." Jinenji smiled. "I'll see you both tonight."

Kagome didn't open her mouth once on the way to the airport, except to tell Inu-yasha to get back on the right side of the road, you moron! She seemed to be deep in thought about something, so he didn't disturb her. Only when he pulled up in front of the terminal she snapped out of her daze, looking around her with a disapproving frown.

"Inu-yasha, this is the disabled spot."

"I am disabled. Well, at least unable."

"Unable? Do I really want to know what you mean by that?"

"Unable to understand what all these stupid traffic rules are good for."

"It's a wonder you even got your license, you know that?"

"What license? Alright, alright, I was just kidding."

They agreed that the best course of action would be simply asking for permission to see the baggage handlers or something, to gain access to the landing areas. Kagome went off to ask for the permission and returned looking like she would dearly have loved to kick something – preferably, a receptionist.

"The cow wouldn't admit us," she growled. "Rules blah, and rules blah blah, and you have no authority, and I don't give a damn if you're from the police or whatever, I have my orders, blah blah blah. That little bimbo! In her permed hair and stupid little skirt! Chicks like that just make me want to... anyway. Guess we'll have to find another way to get in there."

"Do you mind if I try asking for permission first?" Kagome looked up at Inu-yasha in surprise, then shrugged.

"Do as you want."

Inu-yasha returned two minutes later with keys, map and a smirk.

"How on earth did you do that?" asked Kagome, incredulous. "She was the most annoying little rule-abiding bitch I've ever met! Did you hypnotise her or what?"

"In a manner of speaking..." Inu-yasha grinned mischievously, pocketing the keys. "Let's just say that sometimes it's good having a girl-crazy lady-charmer for a brother. At least I've picked up _something_ useful."

With the grant of the receptionist they had no trouble getting to talk to some of the baggage handlers. None of them could remember anything about the day of the plane hijack, except that there had been a pretty girl unloading a plane, one they couldn't recall ever seeing before. Just like the plane crew left behind in Japan however, they had no idea of what she looked like, what she wore or anything that could have helped them.

"What a waste," sighed Inu-yasha, after talking to the sixth clueless person in a row. "That girl must have been a demon, nothing but some sort of spell could have made them this blind. They couldn't even tell us her hair colour, for crying out loud!"

"A demon... or a priestess," said Kagome, looking around her. "That's the plane she used. Let's check it out, OK?"

The plane was quite empty, the police having already done their search and taking anything they thought would be of importance. But in the cockpit lingered a faint trace of power, lighting up the air with a faint glow, invisible to those with untrained eyes but easily noticeable for Inu-yasha and, surprisingly, Kagome as well. Well, no time to wonder why now. Inu-yasha sniffed, concentrating on what his nose was telling him. This power... what was it? Kagome watched on in amusement as he prowled around the room with his eyes closed, taking deep, searching breaths and snuffling around the dashboard.

"It's no use," he said finally. "It's too old. I can't tell what this power is. If we'd only come here earlier... more than a week away it's almost impossible to recognize it. It's someone strong though – weaker auras would have been completely gone already."

"I had no idea you could actually _smell_ what kind of power it was," said Kagome, smiling broadly.

"Well, as I'm part dog demon, my power lies largely in the nose," answered Inu-yasha. "That is where my ability to sense demon auras lies, and also many other abilities. If I was a... frog demon or something instead, I would be able to tell who had been here by tasting the air."

"Frogs have good taste buds, or what?"

"They have the tongue for it, at least. Aargh, the scent in here is all mixed-up! A week ago I would have been able to tell you exactly what kind of demon had been here, but now the air is full of policemen – Jinenji's been here recently, I can still recognize his scent – and perfume and dogs... including a nice little terrier lady in heat... OK, that was just a joke. Stop gagging."

"Did you say perfume?" asked Kagome, once she had stopped being disgusted.

"Yeah... quite strong. I think it's that... what's-the-name... Soul Skimmer. Although that, too, is rather old, I think."

"It would be."

"Sorry?"

"What?" Kagome shook herself. "Sorry, just thinking about something else. Guess we're done here, huh? Don't think we can find out anymore. Well, at least we can now be pretty sure that it was a demon or priestess that hijacked that plane. So what we have to do next is find someone who fits that description and is linked to Naraku."

"No problem, only three quarters of his employees are demons," muttered Inu-yasha. "I vote we eat lunch first. And give the keys back... oh shit. Kagome, could you pretend to be my girlfriend for a couple of minutes?"

"Excuse me?" Kagome regarded her partner with a mixture of shock and amusement.

"Otherwise I'm afraid that Minnie – that receptionist – is going to ask me to marry her."

............................................

**elsiey:** Thank you :) I put the fic under general because it's not only about humour, but that _is_ the main ingredient, of course. I like humour. Humour is good.:)

**ArayaDragonMistress:** Thanks for reading!

**animefreak321654:** Yeah, I've been bad with updating but I'll be better, I promise! (Um... I'll _try_ to be better...) By the way, what's with all the numbers in your name? (Had to memorize them to write your name properly ;)....)

**Dark firestorm:** Ooh, thankee!

**Rayoko:** Will do. Hey, you have almost the same name as my sister! (cool) -> She's called Yoko, by the way.

**AngeloflLight:** A HUNDRED AND SEVENTY??! Wow.

**Harei Sky: **How would you like a wolf demon waitress at the Three-eyed Bull?


	10. Deceit and trickery

Deceit and trickery

"I've just called around, and the guys will all be there tonight," said Inu-yasha, coming back into the small sushi restaurant they were lunching at and sitting down beside her. "Did you save me some tuna? Aw thanks, you're a doll. Would you mind quitting early today? We should have had an easy afternoon yesterday, but then you just had to go and visit that stupid Goshinki. We have earned an afternoon off. _And_ it's Saturday."

"If I don't agree, you'll give me the puppy-eyes treatment, right?"

"Right. And I warn you: I'm an expert on puppy-eyes."

"Seems I have no choice then," grinned Kagome. "Well, it's no problem with me. I'd like an afternoon off too. There are some things I'd like to check up on... can I borrow your bike?"

"No."

"Please?"

"Nope."

"Pretty please?"

"You don't do the puppy-eyes half as well as I do."

"Come on, lend me the bike. How am I supposed to get about town on my own otherwise?"

"Public transport."

"But I want the cool bike!"

"Buy your own."

"Meanie."

........................................

After Kagome had left – muttering loudly about stingy bastards who couldn't part with their bike even for one lousy afternoon – Inu-yasha took a seat outside the little restaurant, leaning back against a wall and enjoying the sunshine. It was always nice to have a little time off from work. Not that it wasn't fun, 'cos it most often was, but still... seven days a week – as it always tended to become – was pretty tiring.

_Sheez, what a lousy job. None of my friends work weekends..._

Well, except Miroku, of course. He worked at parties, and parties are usually held at weekends. And Yura worked weekends, too, for... well, for natural reasons. And... nights, too, certainly. Hrmm. And those old school mates of his that owned the restaurant together worked seven days a week just like him. Kagome's brother probably did a lot of jobs during the weekend. And Jinenji often had Saturday shifts as well, now that he thought about it.

Jeez, didn't he know a single normal nine-to-five person?

_What a life, honestly... wonder where Kagome was going?_

"Hey, you with the dog ears!" He turned his head to see the restaurant owner hurrying towards him. "Your girlfriend left her wallet! You should tell her to be more careful; there's a lot of people in this town who wouldn't hesitate to just take it, you know."

"She's not my girlfriend," said Inu-yasha, sighing. God, why did people always think that? "Oh, but thanks anyway."

_Better take it to her_, he thought, putting the wallet in his pocket and hopping on his cool bike that no one but him was going to ride, so there! _I think she said she might be going shopping. She's going to need her wallet then... now, which way did she take? Right, up this street, I think._

The street wasn't a very busy one, so if he concentrated he could still feel the faint trace of her scent. All the other odours of the city got in the way, and it was all mixed up, but was there a suggestion that she had gone up this street here...? Right, there it was again. Inu-yasha found that he was enjoying himself. It had been a long time since he had the chance to simply track something like this. It was all paperwork and assembling Clues these days. He had always enjoyed the chase better.

He spotted her before long, feeling faintly proud over his nose. He was just about to call to her, when something in her behaviour made him hold back and watch her instead. She was heading into a small shop, looking nervously over her shoulder. Thankfully, she didn't notice him, but walked into the shop.

_What was that?_ he thought, frowning to himself. _She looked as if she didn't want to be seen... wonder what she's up to?_ He decided to wait until she was gone and then check out the shop himself. He felt momentarily guilty for being so suspicious, but then decided that it was better to be suspicious than naive. When Kagome arrived back out he waited for a few minutes until he was sure she was far enough away, then walked up to the doorway himself. It was a tattoo shop, owned by someone called Kaijin-Bo. The name rang a bell.

_Oh yeah, that's the guy who did the spider tattoos for the Goshinki moron and those other guys who worked for Naraku. Maybe she just wanted to check up on them or something. On the other hand... she'd tell me about it, wouldn't she?_

"Welcome, young man!" said a voice from the shadows, and Inu-yasha started. A demon with thick eyebrows and small horns was standing there, leering. He had a necklace made of shrunken human skulls, that all seemed to be leering as well. "How can I help you? A tattoo for you, perhaps? I have a nice new collection of Chinese characters, very popular these days." He waved his hand at a sheet of paper hanging on the front of his desk. Inu-yasha peered at it, moving his lips as he silently translated the Chinese into English.

"Ah... I see I have a choice of "eyebrows", "train station", "Chihuahua", "arse" or "Tourist Information"? Sorry, not interested."

"Oh, very good!" chuckled the demon appreciatively, showing pointy teeth. "It's been a long time since I had someone in here who could read Chinese. You won't guess how many girls there are in this town that are walking around with "airhead" tattooed onto their shoulder. Something else for you, then?"

"No thank you. Are you by any chance Kaijin-Bo?"

"That's right."

"There was a girl here a few moments ago..." Inu-yasha hesitated. He suddenly felt like some kind of stalker, following her like that. "Um... I'm Inu-yasha, and I... I was just wondering what she wanted here?"

Kaijin-Bo looked at him, eyes narrowed.

"That's confidential information, that is."

"Ah! Um, sorry..."

"However... who cares?" Kaijin-Bo gave a hearty laugh, his belly hopping. "She didn't want any tattoo done or anything. Actually, what she wanted to know was if it's possible to remove tattoos. Hey, you're looking worried, lad! Afraid she's going to remove that "I love Inu-yasha forever" or something?" He laughed again, loudly. Inu-yasha didn't find the joke all that funny. He was too busy wondering why Kagome would ask something like that. Did she have a tattoo she wanted removed? One of a... spider, perhaps?

Where did that thought come from? However... it would fit. Naraku's old girlfriend... there might be a reason Kagome had been asking about her. _God, don't let it be that way..._

"Thank you," he said distantly, running a hand through his hair. "I think that was all."

"You wouldn't be interested in something else?" asked Kaijin-Bo, in that greasy voice employed by all salesmen of a certain kind. "For you, I think a dragon would be nice – beautiful creatures, but strong and powerful. To symbolize your personality, I think it would be a wise choice. "

"No, no." Inu-yasha shook his head, smiling. "I'll do without, thanks. Cute necklace, by the way. Incidentally, are those skulls real?"

"You have an expert's eye, I can see that." Kaijin-Bo grinned, nastily. "They have all got their very own history... heh, I guess you could call it my service to the town. You definitely don't get any street kids around here anymore, heh, heh..."

With two steps Inu-yasha was right before him, grabbing his shirt and slamming him up against the wall with more strength than Kaijin-Bo would ever have expected him to possess. He snarled, showing his large canines.

"I'm a nice guy," he hissed, staring into Kaijin-Bo's frightened eyes. "And I'm having a good day. And I'm nice to those who help me. That's why I'm letting you go today. But if I hear that you've added but one..._bead_ to that necklace, I will knock your head off. Even if you move far, far away from here, I swear I will hear of it. And I'll find you, don't worry about that. Wherever you are, I will track you down and make you pay." He let Kaijin-Bo fall to the floor and walked to the door, turning to glare at the older demon one last time... and then he was gone.

Kaijin-Bo didn't get up for some time. When he finally did he walked over to his desk, picked up his phone and dialled a number with shaking fingers.

"Hello? Is this the airport? Yes, hello, I'd like to book a seat for the next flight to Borneo. Yes, as soon as possible. In one hour? That sounds perfect. Yes, that will be fine. By the way... Minnie, was it?... you sound like a nice girl, but it's a bit hard to hear what you're saying through the sobbing... What? You've just had your heart broken? Well, I think I may have the perfect cure for that. How would you like to take over a tattoo shop?"

...........................................

Inu-yasha travelled slowly down the street, following Kagome's scent. He was seething with anger, biting his lip hard. People like that, with no respect for human life, or demonic life for that matter, made him so mad it was all he could do to control himself. Earlier, before Sesshoumaru took him into the agency, he wouldn't have hesitated – instead gone straight for the kill. Eye for an eye... if you murdered, wasn't it only fair that you suffered the same fate yourself?

He had stopped doing that after he got accepted into the YSA. Jinenji had made him see that it made him just as bad himself. Also, Inu-yasha had learnt what it truly meant to be part demon one night when he was at knife's point, threatened by some punks in an alley far from any help. Suddenly his demon blood had unleashed itself. He could remember nothing from that night, except a strange feeling of pleasure, and had woken up in Sesshoumaru's flat the next morning, body aching. His brother had been sitting right next to his bed, his face pale and drawn. It was one of the few times Inu-yasha had seen him truly frightened.

He moved in with Sesshoumaru the day after. Apparently the older demon wanted to keep an eye on him, to make sure he never transformed into a full demon again. He had killed twenty-one young men that night, the punks of that street gang. If he ever transformed again, there'd be no knowing what he might do. To avoid unleashing his demon blood again, he had learnt to control his anger.

Well, more or less, anyway.

What was he doing, thinking about all of this now? He had to find Kagome and give her the wallet. And see what she was up to, of course.

_My first free afternoon in I don't know how long and I'm spending it as a spy, following my partner_, he thought wryly. _This is a twenty-four hour job, alright..._

He looked up, and saw that he had once again managed to trace Kagome right. She was right in front of him, walking into a large café. He parked his bike and followed her carefully. She sat down at a table and he sneaked around to the other end of the room, taking care to sit so she had her back to him, then ordered a coffee. He felt a bit stupid, sitting there like someone from a bad spy movie – the only thing missing was the newspaper with holes for the eyes – but decided to wait and see if she was meeting someone. After five minutes he was rewarded for his efforts – Sango Gari walked into the café, waving happily to Kagome. He leaned back into the shadowy corner so she wouldn't notice him, then perked his ears, listening to their conversation.

"Hello Trix," said Sango quietly as she sat down at Kagome's table, looking suspiciously over her shoulder. "You didn't see anybody following me here, did you? I thought there was someone behind me on the bus but I..."

"How many times do I have to tell you my name is not Trix?" sighed Kagome. "It's Kagome. Kagome. Ka. Go. Me. (By the way, you are so seriously paranoid.)"

"Sorry." Sango shrugged. "But I knew you as Trix for three years. It's hard to rethink all of a sudden. Actually, I can't believe you lied to me. You bitch." Sango pouted, looking hurt. Kagome sighed again, leaning back in her chair and shrugging.

"What can I say? You know I have to be careful with my real name."

"So why are you using it now?"

"You know why. It's a threat, to tell her I'm here. I'm going right out with it and saying "hey, it's me". Stress her a bit, make her make mistakes. Besides, she knows all my other names as well."

"Fair enough. Hey, are you doing something tonight?"

"Sorry. Going out with Inu-yasha."

"Ooh."

"Don't look like that. It isn't a _date_ or something, I'm just meeting all the rest of the agency. Ought to be fun, and it's nice to take some time off from work sometime. I said don't look like that, you... you... person with too much imagination."

"You are blushing."

"Only because you keep insinuating the strangest things."

"He's cute."

"Yes, but so damn suspicious!" Kagome threw her hands into the air in an exasperated gesture. "He's sweet, but he's so hard to fool. He'll be onto me before long, and I can't let that happen. God, why isn't he a bit more like his brother? There's a sucker if I ever saw one."

"Tough, honey," smirked Sango. "Are you sure that you should be going out tonight, by the way? You can never be too sure..."

"She won't know. I'm sure it'll be safe."

"Well, alright then. Guess we'll meet up some other time. Oh, did you see that movie that was on TV a couple of weeks ago? Something about a guy with AIDS... Tom Hanks played him... it was really good anyway."

As Sango started to retell the film, Inu-yasha decided that there was nothing more for him to hear. He left some money on the table for his coffee, then started to sidle away from his seat. When both Sango and Kagome were looking the other way he quickly darted out towards the exit and left the café, thinking hard about what he had heard. God, that conversation had left him no wiser than before. Kagome was afraid he'd find her out... but why? Who was the "she"? Why did Kagome have to be careful with her real name? Well, at least now he knew that it was her real name...

Heh. She had called Sesshoumaru a sucker. Inu-yasha smirked to himself.

_So what do I do now?_ he then thought. _Right, guess I'd better give the damn wallet back now that I chased her through half of town..._

Sighing, he walked back into the café, practising on his "well, imagine meeting you here"-smile.


	11. The Threeeyed Bull

The Three-eyed Bull

"Sesshoumaru, are you ready?"

"In a minute."

Inu-yasha growled, kicking the wall in frustration. He wanted to get going, but his narcissistic brother just had to spend half an hour in the bathroom before they could leave, didn't he. And they were just going to the pub, for crying out loud.

"Sesshy, come on!" shouted Kagome, appearing suddenly beside him and pounding on the door with her fists. "We don't want to be late, imagine what a lousy first impression that would give the guys of me."

Inu-yasha raised an eyebrow. "Sesshy?"

"Just a nickname."

"You know when _I_ use that name he just about kills me?"

"Ah, but that's because you're not as cute as I am."

"Alright, let us go then," interrupted Sesshoumaru, finally coming out of the bathroom. Inu-yasha grudgingly admitted to himself that stuck-up though he was, Sesshoumaru did know how to bring out his good looks to the max. His dark purple shirt matched the markings on his face, and the black trousers were of course neatly pressed and newly washed. Inu-yasha had never understood how his brother managed to keep his clothes so clean – Inu-yasha's own never stayed appropriate for more than half an hour.

He sneaked a look at Kagome and saw to his relief that she was dressed casually in jeans and T-shirt, just like him. At least _she_ knew how to dress.

"I never thought I would meet someone with the same dress sense as my brother," smiled Sesshoumaru as they got into his car (he had refused Inu-yasha's offer to drive on the basis of wanting to be alive at least until they got to the pub). "However, on you it looks good with those worn jeans. How come you don't get the same effect, Inu-yasha?"

"Cause I'm a guy?" snorted Inu-yasha, making his brother smirk. "You think anything without a dick looks good no matter how they dress." He looked again at what Kagome was wearing. She really dressed a lot like him... actually, those jeans looked awfully familiar...

"Hey!" he said. "Those are my jeans!"

"Mine are in the wash," said Kagome, smiling mischievously.

"You little thief."

"I learned from the best."

"Your brother?"

"That's right. After living with someone who pinches your CD's every day for almost twenty years you tend to learn a thing or two."

They arrived at The Three-eyed Bull to find Koga already there, together with two other men who seemed to be wolf demons as well. One had a black stripe in his white hair, the other one had his hair in a mohawk. They were called Ginta and Hakkaku respectively, and looked like they were related.

"Yeah, we're cousins," smiled Ginta when Kagome mentioned this.

"Or actually, I'm his second cousin twice removed," Hakkaku continued, "and he is something like that as well, only his uncle is married to my mother so I don't really know what that makes him..."

"Koga's our... fifth cousin's niece, I think," said Ginta.

"And this is our uncle's second wife's kid sister," said Hakkaku, gesturing to the waitress, a curvy girl with long midnight blue hair, interesting triangle markings under her eyes and sharp claws and fangs. A black cap hid her pointed ears. She looked at Hakkaku quizzically, raising her eyebrows with an amused smile as he and Ginta both stretched their hands out and shook one each of Kagome's.

"Welcome to the agency, sister Kagome."

"_Sister_?" whispered Kagome to Inu-yasha when the cousins – or something – were looking the other way. He and the waitress, who had introduced herself as Haroni Asuka Kiba, both grinned.

"They tend to treat everyone as family," the latter explained in an undertone. "I'm not related to them at all, for example, but since I'm wolf demon they just assume that we have to be related somehow. They're pretty nice guys, but don't get them talking about the Matrix."

"Did I hear someone say The Matrix?" exclaimed the two wolf demons, spinning around immediately.

"No," said Inu-yasha and Haroni in unison, wincing, but Ginta and Hakkaku were already on their feet, making whistling noises and throwing themselves backwards, pretending to avoid bullets. They started flipping and flopping, cartwheeling and vaulting around the room, shouting quotes from the movies to each other and making the other guests at the pub either laugh and cheer them on, or pay up mighty fast and leave in the fear of getting seriously injured.

"Matrix nerds?" asked Kagome, looking slightly alarmed.

"Nerds doesn't even begin to describe it," sighed Inu-yasha (Haroni shook her head and retreated into the safety behind the bar). "They can act out the entire three movies, complete with every quote, stunt and special effect. Notice how they look like they don't have any joints in their bodies at all? They both used to do gymnastics before they came to work for us. Now they are our best guys for gathering information – can break in anywhere. They should get together with your brother sometime..."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, take it easy now," said a voice from the doorway. They turned to see a large demon with a face like a wolf and big, innocent eyes standing in the door. He was surrounded by a herd of smaller demons, several of whom were holding on to his trouser legs or clambering on his back. He had one of the smallest in his arms, and had just lifted her out of harm's way – namely, Ginta and Hakkaku's way.

"Meet Royakan, father of twenty-four," said Inu-yasha tiredly, resting his face in his hands for a moment to gather strength. Then he rose and walked to the door, followed by a very curious Kagome.

"Ah, hello, Inu-yasha!" said the demon as he spotted them walking towards him. "Long time, no see, don't you – "

"Royakan." Inu-yasha's tone of voice suggested a man at his patience's end. "We have had this conversation before. Not once, not twice, but fifteen times I believe it is. And you've promised each time to stop doing this. You can't bring your kids to the pub, Royakan."

"Sheez, you know I can't leave them with the missus, she's pregnant! Could you leave these kids all alone on a Saturday night like this?" Royakan took a look at Inu-yasha's stony face, then grabbed one of his daughters and pushed her in front of him. "Come on Inu-yasha, you'd have to have a heart of granite to turn down a face like this. Make your cute face," he whispered hastily to the little female demon. "No, not the puke face, the cute face!"

The girl looked up at them, big eyes shining and bottom lip trembling slightly.

"Aw, she's adorable!" cried Kagome, hugging the girl to her. "We have to let them stay, Inu-yasha, don't you dare send them home!" Inu-yasha rolled his eyes, glaring at the triumphant Royakan.

"I _knew_ there'd be trouble if we got girls into the agency," he said.

Within half an hour most of the other members of the Youkai Secret Agency had arrived. Kagome met Myoga, a flea demon who was the agency's chief spy – being, well, flea size made him more in danger of getting squashed as a bug than of actually being discovered. She talked for a great length of time to a small green thing called Jaken, who insisted on telling her all about his research on powerful occult objects. However, when she asked him if he had good taste buds and explained her conversation with Inu-yasha regarding different demons' power, he became very upset and told her he was most certainly not a frog. Kagome took that as an indirect yes, especially after Sesshoumaru told her that Jaken was in truth a toad demon – very different from frog, of course. (Hrmm.) There was also an old demon who was called Spiderman, who she didn't say much to – he was a tad scary.

Hiten and Manten arrived as well after a while, floating in through the door and making the old man in the bar – Toto-sai, he was called – shout at them to get back to floor level this instant or he'd have their flying license confiscated, young hooligans!

They pulled three tables together to fit everyone and, after some consideration, added two more to fit all of Royakan's kids. Kagome was right in the middle of the table between Koga and Inu-yasha, talking to all of her new colleagues and generally having a wonderful time.

"Hey guys, what do you think you're doing?" said a voice behind them suddenly. Kagome turned to see a young boy leaning against the doorpost, grinning. He was tall and slim, with vivid red hair and pointed ears. "You started the party without me? Nice, real nice."

"Hey Shippou, come over here and meet Kagome!" shouted Inu-yasha, waving the boy to him. Shippou hastened to oblige.

"I thought you were only seventeen," said Kagome after the introductions and polite welcome phrases had been taken care of, looking puzzled.

"That's right."

"...So why are you here? How did you get in? It's eighteen at the pub, if I remember correctly."

"Honestly, Kagome," grinned Inu-yasha, "you think the boy who hacks into the CIA main information site on his spare time doesn't have the technology to fake an ID-card? He could get a certificate stating him to be the president of the United States if he wanted to! Besides, Toto-sai is an old friend of ours, and would let him in anyway. He let Royakan's kids in, as you – "

"WHAT?!" Kagome leapt up, looked livid. "Now just hold on a minute! Back up, back up! What was that again?"

"He let Royakan's kids..." Inu-yasha began, then backed up, backed up a little more and finally realized what he had just said. "Oh yeah... _you_ are from the CIA, aren't you?"

"You – little – devil!" Kagome was bearing down on Shippou, who cowered down, looking more than a little nervous. "You absolute bastard! Do you know, do you have any idea..." She stopped, gritting her teeth. Inu-yasha put his hands over his eyes. What an idiot he was... Good going to sell out his friend like that.

"I spent five freaking months trying to crack that code!" Kagome burst out, stamping her foot angrily. "And then we found out that some unknown hacker had just broken the code. I was so close to hacking into that database and then you came and did it before me! You little... aargh!"

There was a long pause, in which Inu-yasha and Shippou went through the last few seconds again, trying to work out if Kagome was going to arrest Shippou or not.

"So... um..." Shippou began. Kagome stopped scowling, laughed and slapped his shoulder, unnecessarily hard but basically good-natured.

"Sorry for the outburst," she grinned. "You're really good, I must say. You do know it's illegal though, hacking into databases like that? If it wasn't for the fact that I kept trying to do it myself for almost half a year I'm afraid I'd have to give you a little warning." Shippou shivered. Kagome laughed again. "Just kidding. Friends?"

"Yeah, alright," said Shippou, taking the proffered hand. "But why were you hacking into CIA's pages when you were part of that organisation yourself?"

"Oh, just for fun," said Kagome easily. Inu-yasha perked his ears, then scolded himself. This was no time to be pulling apart everything Kagome was saying, trying to pin something on her. Tonight he would just enjoy himself. Not think about what was suspicious or not. He would not start thinking about stupid little things like how strange Kagome behaved sometimes or what on earth that funny gleam in the window was.

What was that in the window?

"Get down!" he shouted, and threw himself out of his chair, grabbing Kagome around the waist and throwing her and himself down on the floor, just as an arrow came soaring through the window. It missed her by inches.

"Shit!" Kagome exclaimed, rolling away under a table as another arrow came flying, planting itself where her head had been seconds before. She cursed, and threw her arms around the frozen Shippou's knees, dragging him to the floor, then jumped to her feet and did a series of fast cartwheels away from him, towards the door of the pub, narrowly avoiding the relentless arrows on the way. When she was a sufficient distance from their tables she straightened up, balling her hands into fists and looking mad as hell.

"You BITCH!" she screamed in the direction of the window, then crouched down hastily to duck another arrow. When she straightened up again she had three long, thin knives in each hand. She looked towards Inu-yasha and their eyes met for a brief second. Before he had time to do anything however, her attention was caught by another arrow, deadly accurate. She looked away from him again, dodged the arrow, ran to the door and opened it, ran through and slammed it behind her.

When the door closed behind her the rain of arrows stopped as if someone had turned a switch. Everything became very still and quiet. Inu-yasha looked over at Shippou, who had his hands over his head.

"Are you OK?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah," nodded Shippou.

"Good. Then help the others take care of the guests. In approximately nineteen point six seconds they will start screaming, shouting and DEMANDING to see the owner. Don't let them call the police, don't let them sue anyone and don't let Spiderman comfort the hysterical ones – if he does we'll have permanent shock on our hands. OK? I have to go and help Kagome." Having asserted himself that Shippou had understood, Inu-yasha pushed himself to his feet and hurried out of the pub, silently counting to himself.

Five, four, three, two, one...

"I DEMAND to see the owner!"

Inu-yasha closed the door behind him, breathing out in relief. He'd take gangsters, guns, danger and life-threatening situations any day, over dealing with an outraged high-class nob who claimed that paragraph 198740:883 or something of the law about something or other said quite clearly that every restaurant had to have bullet-, fire- and arrow-proof windows and that he was insured, thank you very much! What a nightmare. He left those to his brother. Sesshoumaru was good with people like that. Very diplomatic. (Read: smarmy.)

"Coward! You FUCKING COWARD!"

Oh yes. Kagome.

"Hey, are you alright?" he shouted, running towards her. She was standing a bit further off, and had just thrown one of her knives over the roof of the nearby house. When she heard him shout she turned around, and he almost recoiled. She looked absolutely livid. Her hair had come down from its ponytail and was hanging loose about her face, and he could have sworn it was crackling. She still had one knife in her hand, having thrown all the others, and her T-shirt was torn. Blood was running down her arm from a flesh wound right above her elbow.

"The little bitch just ran away," she growled, gritting her teeth. "Didn't even have the courage to take me on. If it's something I hate, something really hate, it's COWARDS like that!" She noticed he was staring at her arm and seemed to calm down a little, even smiling in a soothing fashion. "Don't worry about my arm, it's nothing deep. It just scratched me. Will you help me find the rest of the knives? She won't be back tonight, but I'd like to have them to be sure."

"No." Inu-yasha smiled at her surprised expression. "First we'll get the blood flow stopped, you idiot. You'll be fainting all over the place otherwise, and it'll be me who has to carry you. Come here." He took off his shirt and tore it in two, then four pieces.

"Hold out your arm."

Kagome stayed very quiet as he bandaged her arm. When he was finished – nothing fancy, just something to stop the blood flow – she tested her arm and smiled.

"Thank you," she said quietly. Inu-yasha's breath caught in his throat. Suddenly she looked extremely beautiful, with her hair out, framing her face, and the small, almost shy smile lighting up her features. He reflected sourly that he had been spending too many years on the streets if someone had to be bloodstained and bandaged for him to find them attractive. Well, not that he hadn't ever thought about her as attractive before, but... actually, he had never _really_ thought about her like that before. She looked almost exactly like miss Miko, and yet he felt drawn to the lawyer in a totally different way. Well, until right now, that was.

And this was no time to be getting horny, Inu-yasha, you dog.

He looked over her shoulder, trying to find something to concentrate on other than her face. He noticed an arrow was stuck in the wall, right behind her. It was glowing slightly, and he could feel a strange scent. He frowned, reaching out with his hand.

"Hey, it's one of those – "

"Don't touch it!" shouted Kagome shrilly, grabbing his hand just before he was about to take the arrow. He looked at her, surprised.

"That arrow is dangerous," she explained, letting go of his hand. "That was a priestess attacking us, and the arrow is soiled with her energy. See my arm?" She indicated the bandaged limb. "The arrow didn't even touch me, but yet it cut me." She put a hand in front of him to make him hold his distance, then reached out and took a hold of the arrow, pulling it out of the wall.

"But – " Inu-yasha began.

"I, also, am a priestess," smiled Kagome as she put both her hands around the arrow, making it glow faintly. He realized that she was purifying it, making it safe for him and others to touch. "It's not as dangerous for me."

"Priestess?" Inu-yasha raised his eyebrows. "Don't like calling you a liar, Kagome, but since you always seemed so interested in Naraku's old girlfriend, the priestess, I did some research on people of the power. You're not on the list."

"Of course not." Kagome smiled again. "I'm unlicensed. Quite illegal. It runs in the family – Sota has some power too, which makes him such an excellent thief. He's unlicensed as well though. Remember you asked if he was using magic, and I tried to avoid answering you? It was because it's not something many people can know. That's why I haven't told you before. Don't tell anyone else, please. I can trust you with it, but I don't want anyone else to know."

"Sure." Inu-yasha nodded, feeling proud over the confidence. Kagome frowned, looking puzzled about something.

"Hey, did you find her on the list? Naraku's girlfriend?"

"Well, I have no idea of what she's called, of course, but there was no one who seemed to fit the description. People of the power are pretty rare, so it wasn't a long list. Do you think they were lying about her being a priestess?"

"Nah, I didn't expect her to be listed," said Kagome casually. "And even if she was she would have been using a false name, of course. I doubt if Naraku is _his_ real name, either..."

"Makes sense, I guess." Inu-yasha thought about it for a while, then realized he was much too cold to be thinking about stuff like that right now. "Come on, let's find those knives and then get inside. It's freezing."

"'Course it is, if you're walking around without a shirt on. You flasher."

"The term is 'unselfish' and 'helpful'."

They searched for a bit and managed to locate all but the last knife, the one she had thrown up over the roof after the fleeing assassin. She had just put them back in their rather clever sheaths that she had strapped to her calves, underneath her trousers, when Inu-yasha felt a gentle put firm pressure behind his head that felt as though someone, who could squeeze a lot harder if they were in the mood for it, had just grabbed his neck.

"This is the police. Put your hands on your head and don't touch those knives if you know what's good for you," said a voice behind him.

............................................... 

**Harei sky:** Enjoy.

**elsiey: **Actually, there's nothing special about the names themselves. By the by... plugginess? That's such a cute word! (Goes under my favourites now :P) Well, there is a hint here...:) And as for how serious it is... I'll see how it develops.

**AngeloflLight:** Yeah, I'm trying to give you one piece at a time... wouldn't want you to solve the puzzle _too_ fast. ;)

**Rayoko:** Haven't I been pretty good with updates lately? :) ...I'm so fishing for compliments...:P I've been quicker than two weeks, anyway. (Wow...)


	12. Exit Kagome, enter Kikyo

Exit Kagome, enter Kikyo 

"Gave you a fright, did I?" grinned Jinenji. Inu-yasha didn't answer. He was too busy drinking the large vodka he had ordered to calm his poor nerves. He contented himself with glaring at his friend over the top of the glass. Jinenji ought to know better. He knew how much Inu-yasha hated the cops. Well, excepting Jinenji himself, of course.

Inu-yasha was starting to wonder about that "excepting".

"Would you mind telling me what happened out there?" Jinenji continued, now serious. "I get here for a nice evening with the old colleagues – a little late, I admit – and instead of laughter and drinks I find broken windows, arrows everywhere, Kagome bleeding through her bandages and a heated argument about some damn paragraph of some law issuing from the pub. What is this about?"

Inu-yasha looked up at him over the rim of his glass, then glanced over at the tables, where Kagome was now sitting with Shippou and Koga, talking and laughing. Toto-sai had bandaged her up properly, and her arm no longer seemed to be bleeding. She was also wearing Koga's jacket. He had taken it off as soon as they came back in, hurrying over towards them and looking worried. Inu-yasha, whose teeth were chattering, had gratefully stretched out his arms – and Koga had walked right past him, throwing the jacket around Kagome's shoulders and saying she really ought to be more careful, it was cold outside.

Bastard.

"I don't know," he said truthfully, shrugging. This took some effort. Jinenji had, when he noticed how cold Inu-yasha seemed, given him his thick leather jacket. Since it was made for someone about twice Inu-yasha's size, it made shrugging the shoulders a right workout. "I suddenly saw something outside the window, some sort of aura thingie, and right after that the arrows just started flying through the windows. Kagome seemed to know at once who it was we were up against… she knew that it was a woman, at least… anyway, she ran outside and as soon as she had closed the door behind her the attack stopped – in here, at least. The person who attacked had run off before I got outside."

"The attack was meant for Kagome."

"Yes…"

"You suspect her of something, don't you?" said Jinenji, looking over at Kagome. "I can tell there's something making you unsure about her."

"You're right," sighed Inu-yasha. "There are just such a lot of things that don't make sense, like she gets nervous as soon as I mention the CIA, and she's supposed to be from there. She has more information than she ought to about everything – maybe she just does her background research real good, but I doubt it. She has several different names, although Kagome is her real one… don't ask me how I found out… I'm starting to wonder if she's instead connected to Naraku or something."

"It's not impossible," said Jinenji solemnly. "You usually don't suspect people unless you have a good reason to, Inu-yasha. Keep an eye on her, just to be sure. Try to find out what happened tonight, too. I'll try to cover up somehow… your brother will have to handle the angry guests. He's a smooth talker, he should be able to manage. I'll just have to find some story that will satisfy the boss and not arouse his suspicion…"

"Jinenji, you're a life saver," said Inu-yasha gratefully. "Don't know what I'd do without you. Are you sure you can take it? Otherwise me and the bro' could make something up."

"Nah, I'll do it. He trusts me." Jinenji grinned, thumping Inu-yasha on the back and making him fall forward over the bar top. "Anything for an old friend and partner. Let me know if you need some help with the new case on Naraku, will you? I can't promise anything, but I'll try to dredge up something, at least."

"Thanks," coughed Inu-yasha, rubbing his ribs lightly. "Let's go to the others, shall we? We are here to enjoy ourselves, after all."

The rest of the evening turned out well. Sesshoumaru managed to get rid of all the irritating businessmen DEMANDING to see the owner and the rest of the guests were assured that there was no danger, thanks to the brave action by agent Kagome Higurashi. The rest of the agency was a tad shaken as well, but calmed down after a beer each, on the house. However, they all felt that they needed another beer, just to make sure they were really calm again. And another. And one or two more, just to be on the safe side. Royakan's kids meanwhile, who had ducked briefly while the arrows were flying through the room, had as soon as the risk of death was not immediate straightened up again and kept eating their ice-cream, looking mildly surprised over the hysterical reactions of the grownups in the room.

_If Royakan keeps dragging those kids of his around all over the place they will end up being frightened by nothing less than the utter destruction of the earth_, thought Inu-yasha. He noted, however, that the oldest kid – a sixteen-year-old girl – was trying hard to look scared whenever Shippou was in her proximity, making him put an arm around her shoulder soothingly and assure her that nothing more would go wrong. Inu-yasha grinned broadly. _Ooh, I smell puppy-love._

Ginta and Hakkaku ended up tying themselves in so many knots they had to have help from some of the smaller Royakan juniors to get untangled again. Royakan himself fell asleep, and was carried home by his children when The Three-eyed Bull finally closed up. Myoga spent some time "comforting" a widow at a nearby table, but was after a while discovered and squashed. Toto-sai helpfully lighted all the candles on their numerous tables by sneezing when he passed by once, scorching Inu-yasha, Manten, Ginta, Jaken and nine kids in the process (Haroni, the waitress, ducked expertly and went in search of a fire estinguisher). Spiderman smiled at a man who passed him the salt, making the poor bugger have to go and lie down for half an hour. And Jinenji looked happier than Inu-yasha had seen him for a while, talking, joking and laughing with his old friends.

All in all, it had been a pretty good evening. Hiten, Sesshoumaru and Koga had been rivalling for Kagome's attention the whole night through, making Inu-yasha both laugh, and scowl with jealousy.

What? Jealousy? Him? No way. Cough.

How they got home that night was something Inu-yasha would never remember. The next morning was something he'd never forget, but he wished he could. He couldn't recall when he had installed the tiny copper hammers on the inside of his skull, or for what purpose. He really wished he hadn't. And as if it hadn't been enough to wake up at a relatively normal hour such as, say, two p.m., he was awakened by an inhuman call at about seven thirty that morning.

"Must… have… coffeeeeee…"

The voice etched itself onto his brain like a badly done tattoo, making him wide awake in a matter of seconds. He perked his ears – the motion made four million icicles ram themselves into his brain with the force of several elephants. …Well, at least it felt like it. He could hear nothing further however, so he closed his eyes (making his head scream out in protest against the sudden, violent movement) and went back to sleep.

Three hours later he woke up again to find Kagome sitting in his window, reading "Animal Farm" by George Orwell and drinking a coffee, looking very tranquil and at one with the world.

"Brrzt?"

"Fine, and how are you?"

"KFffkx…"

"Not really."

"Ypprll?"

"I have no idea of what you are saying, you know that?" Kagome laughed, sending small needles of pain into the bullseye of Inu-yasha's nerve centre. He groaned, rolling out of his bed. And hit the floor, not the usual mattress of clothes and paper that should have broken his fall.

"Oh yes, I took the liberty of cleaning up a little in here while you were asleep."

"HJKUYFFGDSTTRZXXKP!"

"I believe that translates as "Wench, what the FUCK have you done to my room and why are you so goddamn awake"," said Sesshoumaru. He was leaning on the frame of Inu-yasha's door, his long hair tousled. He winced, shading his eyes from the merciless sun with his hand. "Damn, I think I'm starting to sober up. Do we have any coffee?"

"In the kitchen," said Kagome, smiling up at him. "You will also find some headache pills in the top drawer."

"You're God's gift to us lowly demons, Kagome." Sesshoumaru tried to straighten up and failed miserably. "Did you hear something by the way, at about seven thirty? Some sort of scream, or screech. Or… wail. Actually, I don't know if there is any word that is able to describe it."

"I have no idea of what you are talking about," said Kagome innocently.

"Alright. I will now go and serve myself the drink of heaven, coffee, spiced with the marvel of the medical world, known as headache pills. Nice work on the room, by the way."

"Wsddgh."

"Oh, and that was I hate you both."

……………………….

"So explain to me once again why you want to work on a Sunday."

"I don't want to work today, Inu-yasha."

"You are a hopeless work-a-holic, I hope you are aware of that."

"I was planning on giving us the entire day off today, Inu-yasha."

"That is just sad, Kagome, I hope you realize that. Can't you let us have just one day off?"

"But I'm telling you I don't WANT to work today!" Kagome laughed, then took a hold of one of his ears and yelled into it. "I-WOULD-LIKE-THE-DAY-OFF-AS-WELL!"

"YAAAH!" Inu-yasha jumped away from her, clutching his sensitive ears. He glared accusingly at her. "Sheez, I'm not deaf, woman. Although after that ordeal I wouldn't be surprised if I am…" His brain suddenly caught up with what his ears had been trying to tell him for the last half hour or so. "You mean you don't want to work today?"

"Thank you," said Kagome sourly. "You know, if you actually listened to what I was telling you sometimes this would be so much easier."

They spent a day without too much exhaustion, reading quietly by themselves or performing some small, unimportant task. Sesshoumaru seemed to share their sympathies, staying home as well and devoting himself to his computer. He claimed he was assembling facts for a case about a millionaire's kidnapped dog, but Inu-yasha caught him with what looked suspiciously like Solitaire when he walked past once. The next day was spent just as quietly, with Inu-yasha and Kagome searching for information about Naraku's staff – without much success – and Sesshoumaru on office duty. At about five o'clock he called them on Inu-yasha's cell phone to remind them of something both had managed to forget.

"Inu-yasha's phone, the same speaking."

"Hello, stupid."

"Oh, hi," said Inu-yasha brightly. "…Sesshy. How are you doing, ol' one-armed bandit?"

"You don't have to exaggerate the insults," came Sesshoumaru's hurt voice over the line. "I wanted to remind you of what we're doing tonight."

"What are we doing tonight?" asked Inu-yasha The Completely Clueless.

"Sometimes I feel like just giving up on you," said Sesshoumaru, sounding very tired. "Let me give you some clues. Dinner. Official business. Lawyer. Lady."

"What?"

"New case. Naraku. The Prada Firm."

"Are you feeling well?"

"Lady. Very pretty lady…"

"Shit!" Inu-yasha exclaimed, as his memory (finally) kicked in. "We're having miss Miko over for dinner! I had totally forgotten about that!"

"You don't say," said Sesshoumaru dryly. "I believe I gave you something for Christmas? Little black book, full of dates? Very useful thing, actually… Where is that?"

"The almanac?" asked Inu-yasha guiltily. "Er… there was a… sort of accident…"

"You flushed it down the toilet."

"Who, me? Alright, so maybe it accidentally… fell…" Inu-yasha could feel the Look his brother was giving him even over the phone. "Anyway, I don't hold with that sort of thing, you know that! It doesn't work for me! I can't be bothered, filling in all those ugly little dates with stupid Things-to-do…"

"Hence, all the forgotten appointments. Have you been to the dentist yet?"

"Honestly, what are you? My mum? Sheez!" Inu-yasha exclaimed, trying to ignore the little voice inside him that said 'oops… dentist'. "Alright, alright, no worries. My living almanac, Sesshy, has reminded me of my dinner appointment tonight, so now I'm updated. Me and Kagome will be there, no prob. Signing off now."

"And wear something nice." Sesshoumaru listened to the annoying buzzing sound in his phone and realized that Inu-yasha had hung up before he had time to hear that last part. Oh well, how bad could he dress?

………

He needed to get in touch with Inu-yasha again _right now_.

………………………..

"Yeah? Oh, it's you again. What? Something nice? Well duh, I always wear something nice! I was thinking about the jeans with the big splash of paint on one leg and that old singlet with Led Zeppelin on. You know, the one with the torn sleeves? …alright, alright, I was making a joke. Jeez, pull yourself together. Oh, stop that wailing. Yes, I will wear something relatively nice. Eight? Sure, we'll be there. Bye."

"What was that about?" asked Kagome, returning from an ice-cream booth with two large cones of chocolate ice-cream.

"About dinner tonight, with miss Miko. Watch out! Aw, what a shame, you dropped it. Clumsy idiot. Hey, you look pale, are you alright?"

"Yeah…" said Kagome slowly, then looked down and saw the dropped ice-cream. "Oh no! How stupid of me. Here, take the one that's left."

"Let's get a new one instead. Guy or girl in the ice-cream booth?"

"Girl, you take it."

"Be back in a second." He grinned mischievously at her and walked off. She watched him as he leaned against the side of the ice-cream booth, giving the girl his patented I'm-a-sexy-bastard grin. Within three minutes he returned with a new ice-cream, looking very satisfied with himself.

"Don't know what I did before I met you," he grinned. "Finally someone else who knows how to use their charm to get free favours!"

"I know I'm good," Kagome grinned back. "Excuse me for a sec, OK? Gotta make a phone call to the old boss. He wanted me to call today. And you've got ice-cream on your nose."

"Where? I can't see any," said Inu-yasha. He spent the rest of the time Kagome was away by trying to look at his own nose and failing miserably. After a while Kagome returned, looking apologetic and irritated.

"Hopeless old bastard," she grumbled. "I'm going to have to go away for a few days. He wants to speak to me face to face. He's such a hopeless… oh well. It can't be helped. Will you give me a lift to the airport?"

"Yeah, sure," said Inu-yasha easily, still trying to see his nose. After a while he became aware of a sort of expectant silence. He looked up and saw Kagome with her helmet on, looking at him with a tad of impatience. "What, you mean like right now?"

Kagome nodded.

"He's one for fast action, so to speak."

"But… but…" Inu-yasha floundered. "But you'll miss the dinner! And it was you miss Miko wanted to meet!"

"Oh, I'll give her a call or something. You'll have to manage on your own. Now come on, my plane leaves at 17:45 and I don't want to miss it."

Inu-yasha could find nothing else to argue about, so without further ado they both hopped on the bike and sped off to the airport (Inu-yasha drove). Kagome left him outside the departures, after assuring him that she would be back Thursday and reminding him to buy new coffee. It was a very desolate Inu-yasha who returned home to the flat, without Kagome behind him. Somehow, he had started taking it for granted that she would be there. It was strange when she suddenly wasn't.

"And where is Kagome?" asked Sesshoumaru when he arrived home.

"In New York or Washington or wherever it is she has her boss," said Inu-yasha glumly. "She had to go back for a few days."

"What?!" Sesshoumaru exclaimed, then regained his composure. "Oh well, guess that's only to be… expected. Bad timing though. Now, _will_ you get into some nice clothes? I'll call the Pedersen family and ask them to make us something nice."

At eight o'clock precisely there was a knock on the door, and after a short scuffle Inu-yasha won the right to open the door. He organized his features in a bright, welcoming and above all charming smile.

"Welcome – " he started, then frowned. "Koga. What are you doing here?"

"Briefing on the case," said Koga, pushing past Inu-yasha and then stopping to regard him in confusion. "Would you mind telling me why on earth you're wearing a shirt?"

"Koga!" Sesshoumaru stepped into the hall, saving Inu-yasha from having to explain himself. "What are you doing here?"

"I have a lot of missing pieces in the millionaire's dog case. I need you to…" Koga looked from Sesshoumaru to Inu-yasha and back again. "OK. Here's you in an Armani shirt and suit, and you little bro' wearing something that actually looks nice. Could I have some explanation to why Inu-yasha is suddenly dressed in a manner that doesn't suggest he lives on fifth avenue under a piece of cardboard? Oh yeah, and you too, Sesshoumaru. You going out or something?"

"Actually, we're – " Sesshoumaru began, when there was another knock on the door. Inu-yasha opened, once again arranging his face into the "You are so welcome"-smile.

"Welcome – " he started, then frowned. "Shippou. What is this, why are you here too?"

"Some interesting information on the millionaire's dog just turned up!" said Shippou brightly, then stopped in mid-sparkle to stare incredulously at Inu-yasha. "What the – what are you – I mean you look civil! What's happened to you, man?"

"Thank you," said Inu-yasha sourly. "I'm delighted by your views on my dress sense. Now, thing is, we're having someone over for dinner, so if you could take this at any other time this week it would be – " He was interrupted by a third knock on the door. "Oh, for the love of God!"

He yanked the door open, glowering. In accordance with Murphy's Law the person on the other side of the door was, of course, miss Miko. She looked slightly alarmed when she saw his irritated expression.

"Sorry I'm a bit late…" she said hesitantly. "There were a lot of other cars so there was a shortage in parking spots. Um. Sorry?"

"No, forgive my brother," said Sesshoumaru, all brilliant, charming smiles. "We were just a little swamped when our colleagues here suddenly turned up. But they are just about to leave, so it's quite alright."

"We are?" said Koga, who was sometimes a little slow in the uptake. Shippou rolled his eyes.

"Oh, but you must stay!" said miss Miko, with a smile that somehow didn't quite reach her eyes. "I've been very interested in your agency, and I'd be very happy to meet more of its members. Can't you spare a little of your time for a quick dinner?"

"What?" said Koga, who was sometimes very slow in the uptake. Shippou rolled his eyes, twice.

"They'd be happy to," said the considerably-quicker-in-the-uptake Sesshoumaru, smiling at miss Miko. "Now, if I may help you with your coat…"

"What?" said Koga. Shippou put his hand over his eyes, took a gentle but firm grip on Koga's arm and led him into the apartment, saying something about social incompetence. Inu-yasha followed, wishing for less dense colleagues, and after him came miss Miko and Sesshoumaru, talking politely about the terrible shortage of parking spots and the state of the city's streets nowadays. After a short welcome drink they were all seated at the table, Koga now looking as if he at least understood half of what was going on.

"I'm sorry that our new agent Kagome Higurashi couldn't be here tonight," said Sesshoumaru, looking at miss Miko with an apologetic smile. "I know you wanted to meet her, but unfortunately she was called away on important business."

"I know," said miss Miko, then bit her lip suddenly.

"You know?" frowned Inu-yasha. "How – oh yes, she said she'd give you a call."

"Yes!" said miss Miko, with a look that Inu-yasha would have described as relief, which didn't seem to fit in the circumstances. "Yes, exactly. She did."

As Shippou turned to miss Miko and started asking her about the computer network in Prada, Inu-yasha cast a glance in Koga's direction, and was surprised to see that the other man was staring at miss Miko with a most curious and menacing look. Inu-yasha raised his eyebrows in surprise, and tried to catch Koga's eye to ask what was going on. The wolf demon didn't seem to notice, however, and kept staring at miss Miko as if he was five years old and she had stolen his teddy.

After a while he stirred, and looked over at Inu-yasha.

"Could you show me the way to the bathroom, Yasha?"

"Don't you know – " Inu-yasha began, then understood what the other demon was on about. "Oh. Uh, sure."

"You are so subtle," said Koga witheringly, once they were out of earshot.

"Shut up. Why were you glaring at miss Miko like that?"

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about." Koga frowned, looking puzzled and annoyed. "Can't you feel it? There is something seriously wrong with that chick, I tell you. She's like… I don't know… just wrong."

Inu-yasha looked blandly at him.

"Sorry?"

"Oh, never mind!" Koga looked exasperated, throwing his hands into the air. "It's no good getting you to understand, I can see that. You're so into that woman. Is that why you tried to get your hands on Kagome? 'Cos they look alike? Don't you see the difference? It's like… yin and yang, or something. They may look alike, but they are each other's opposite."

Inu-yasha stared.

"You are seriously freaking me out here, Koga. What's with all the "psychic feeling" shit? Have you been into the police's drug seizings again?"

Koga gave him a Look, then stomped off towards the bathroom. Inu-yasha let him go, shaking his head sadly. That guy just got weirder and weirder.

"And it's not like I'm into miss Miko anyway!" he called after Koga's retreating form. Koga made an impatient noise and walked on.

…………………………..

Hey everybody! Sorry for the unusually long break between updates – I've been staying with a friend for a while and had no access to the computer. This now being over, I will once again become nice and regular with updates (hopefully).


	13. While the cat's away the dog is oh so bo

While the cat's away… the dog is oh so bored.

_Thank god that's over_, thought Inu-yasha later that night. The dinner had been an awkward affair, with Koga glaring daggers at miss Miko and the others trying to distract her from noticing this. Sesshoumaru, being the smooth talker he was, had managed to cover up most of the embarrassing pauses, but still… it hadn't been the best of nights. The worst part had probably been when Koga left, a little earlier than the others. He had gone whistling down the stairs only to return after about five minutes, furious.

The scene replayed itself in Inu-yasha's mind like a bad movie.

_Koga: Some bloody stupid sonofabitch with an IQ on the same level as seagulls has parked his car right outside mine! I can't get out! What kind of moron would do something as fucked-up stupid as – _

_Miss Miko: Oh, dear. Was it a dark blue Mercedes? That was me, I'm afraid. There were no other parking spots. I am so sorry._

All members of the YSA: …… 

_Shippou: …come here, Koga, will you? I need to talk to you for a bit about civil language._

But finally, they had all left, and the house was once again nice and quiet. He put his hands behind his head, looking up into the ceiling and breathing out slowly. Kikyo had really picked his brain about the case, wanting to know everything about Naraku, how much they had on him and if they were getting somewhere at all. He had tried to fill her in according to ability, but for every sentence he uttered she had a question, and another question to follow on that. Before long he had been wishing for Kagome to come and save him. Naturally, the odds of that happening were about the same size as the odds for Sesshoumaru cutting his hair.

Where were they regarding the case, really? What real information did they have, now that he thought about it? Not much, in any case. They knew a woman was in charge of the organisation of this "Shikon deal". They knew a demoness/priestess had stolen a plane for transportation of these drugs…

…two women, closely connected to the deal… maybe it was the same woman? Well, that was a strange thought – that wasn't how it usually went, was it? You had someone at the top, who decided things and organised everything, and then you had rank after rank with less and less important people until you found someone far enough down the scale to do the dirty work. On the other hand though… maybe the reason that Naraku had never been caught was that he didn't do things quite the usual way? If what he just had thought of was true, they'd be looking for someone quite high up in Naraku's gang, someone with intelligence and power, and someone who also had the resources to pull off something like, say, stealing a plane. Someone quite close to Naraku, probably…

Inu-yasha shot out of his bed and cursed when he landed, knees first, on the floor. He still had to get used to a clean room… damn that Kagome. Who did she think she was? (insert seven minutes of Inu-yasha grumbling) Now, where was his cell phone? There! He dialled Kagome's number, only checking afterwards what time it was. Half past midnight. Whoops. _Oh what the hell, this is important._

"Hi Inu-yasha, how are you doing?" came Kagome's voice through the phone, bright and cheerful and very much awake. He shook his head in amazement.

"Do you ever sleep, woman?"

"It happens. Do you have something special to speak to me about or did you just miss me?"

"Feh, like I'd miss you," he scoffed, a faint blush spreading across his cheeks. Thank god she couldn't see his face.. "I just thought of something really important – the girl who was in charge of the whole Shikon deal business could maybe be the same one who brought the shit here by that hijacked plane. And you know your friend Goshinki? He told us a lot about his sister, Kagura? How she was all close to Naraku, and how she was in charge of the security of the club – meaning she is probably pretty smart, and would quite likely have experience of the streets as well."

"Oh, how clever," said Kagome softly. "You think Kagura is the one? Yes, it would fit, wouldn't it. What a perfect scapegoat she will be!"

"Huh? Yes, I guess so," said Inu-yasha, propping himself up against the side of his bed and making himself comfortable. "Anyway, I thought we'd get hold of this Kagura chick and ask her some questions. If Goshinki's right and she's tired of working for Naraku, she might have some evidence pointing to him – especially on the Shikon deal, since she'll probably have had pretty loose reins on it. If we can wring a confession from her, and add on Goshinki-jerk's witness, we'll have something."

"Perfect," said Kagome in an absent tone, signalling that she was thinking about something. "Wow, great of you to think up that. We'll have to start working on it soon. Well, how are things with you otherwise? How was your dinner? With miss… Miko?"

"Pretty shitty," sighed Inu-yasha, rolling his eyes. "Koga and Shippou turned up out of the blue and miss Miko insisted they join us. Then Koga spent the entire evening trying to get the saying "looks can kill" to work on her. He seemed to hate her for some unknown reason. She also asked tons of questions about the case, and when I say "tons", I'm not exaggerating. Couldn't you have helped me out by filling her in a little when you talked to her earlier?"

"What? No, I haven't talked to her yet," said Kagome. "I'm going to give her a call tomorrow."

Inu-yasha blanched. What?! But… he was sure miss Miko had said that she'd had a call from Kagome. Was she lying? Why on earth would she lie about that? This meant… this meant…

…that miss Miko was for some reason having Kagome followed. How else could she have known that Kagome had flown back home? Maybe miss Miko suspected her of something as well? What did this mean?

"Helloooo…? Inu-yashaaaaa…" Inu-yasha guiltily snapped out of his thoughts and laughed.

"Sorry, thinking about something," he said easily, deciding to change the subject. "Hey, I've been thinking… when we talked to Goshinki you said Kohaku would never be a criminal because he's too honest. But your brother Sota is a thief. Isn't he honest?"

"Sota?" laughed Kagome. "Of course he is. You don't get far in the criminal world if you're dishonest."

"…?" said Inu-yasha.

"The thing with Kohaku," Kagome continued, "is that he has this basic set of morals built in. And that's something Sota doesn't have. He's a sweet boy, but he has no objections against breaking the law a little if it's necessary – whereas Kohaku would never do that. I guess you could say the difference lies in innocence. Sota's more like you and me, while Kohaku has yet to lose his innocence. You with me?"

"I'm with you. So when did you… er… lose your innocence?"

"Well, let me see…" Inu-yasha could practically hear her grinning over the phone. "I was six years old and had made a daisy chain. And I offered it to a passing policeman, and he said 'I don't accept bribes'."

"That's a good one." Inu-yasha laughed, imagining a six-year-old, disgruntled Kagome. It was a very cute vision. Kagome giggled on the other end of the line, mischievously.

"Well, my time to ask you something I've been thinking about: why are you scared of Jinenji's mum?"

"I'm not going to answer that. Besides, I'm not scared of her."

"If you don't tell me I'm going to ask Jinenji."

"Yeah, right. And… um… he couldn't tell you anyway. Not that I am scared of her or anything, but if that was the case it'd be because of something that Jinenji didn't know about…at least I think he doesn't… I mean, at least I think he wouldn't… um…"

"Do you have Jinenji's phone number?"

"I'm not giving it to you."

"Why not, if you have nothing to hide?"

"Um…"

"Got you!"

They spent another half-hour talking, until Inu-yasha realized that he was paying for this and that his phone bill this month was going to reach astronomical heights. But for some reason, when he hung up he was feeling much happier. It had been nice to talk to Kagome. She really was very funny. But was she who she said she was?

Inu-yasha thought for a while and came to the conclusion that tonight, he didn't care what or who Kagome was. He liked her anyway.

……………………..

The days until Kagome's return passed slowly, oh so slowly. Inu-yasha hadn't really appreciated how much he liked having her around. _Guess it's true you don't miss it until it's gone…_

Finally Thursday morning arrived and with it, Kagome. Inu-yasha picked her up at the airport, and was very surprised when she gave him a hug.

Surprised is not to say he didn't like it.

"I've missed you heaps," smiled Kagome as she let him go. "It was awfully boring in Washington, and the work I had to do…! Sheez, I'd forgotten what a slave driver that man is." She sighed, then brightened. "But now I'm back! What's our next plan?"

"Find Kagura and ask her to straighten out some things for us. I thought we'd pay some people a visit, how about that? Just go through all my contacts and see if anyone knows her."

"Sounds good to me. What have you gotten done while I was away?"

"Not much…" Inu-yasha coughed, feeling embarrassed. "Talked to some dealers. They had all been promised part of the Shikon deal, but they didn't know who had done the promising or what it would involve, nothing. They'd gotten a phone call some time back, but hadn't heard from the caller again. It was a woman though, no surprise there… Well, none of them had any real information for me. We found the millionaire's kidnapped dog, by the way. I worked a bit on that while you were away."

"Good news," said Kagome absently. "Hey, would you mind eating lunch with Sango Gari today? I promised I'd see her when I got back."

"Fine by me."

The morning went by fast. The people they talked to either didn't know Kagura, or they hadn't heard from her for a long while. It was only when they talked to Yura that they found out something a bit more substantial.

It was another girl who opened the door to The Happy Bunny this time. When she saw Inu-yasha she shrieked.

"Darling!" Throwing her arms around his neck, she kissed his cheek soundly, then straightened up and glared evilly at Kagome who stood some paces behind, looking shocked. "Is this your girlfriend, darling? Is she the one who made you quit?" Kagome rolled her eyes.

"No, she's not my girlfriend," laughed Inu-yasha, then kissed the girl's cheek. Kagome looked even more shocked. "We're here to see Yura, so run along and get her, please."

"Oh, we're on lunch break. Come on in." She waved them on with one hand and led the way into the club. However, instead of leading them into the dressing room as Yura had last time, she walked on past that room and opened a door right at the end of the corridor. The door led to a large room, filled with youngsters lounging in some worn-down sofas, or on pillows placed here and there throughout the room. As soon as the two agents entered the room however, they were startled from their apathy immediately. Almost everyone looked up and waved, and several people jumped to their feet.

"Hey, it's Inu-yasha!"

"Yo Inu!"

"Are you coming back to us now, Inu-yasha?"

"Where've you been? God, it's been _years_!"

"We're not letting you go this time, Yasha!"

"Take it easy, take it easy," laughed Inu-yasha, putting his hands into the air. "Sorry guys, but I won't be back yet. Got a new job, you know that. I'm here for an investigation… where's Yura…"

"La, just a minute," said a voice somewhere in the back of the crowd that had gathered in front of Inu-yasha and Kagome. "Get out of my way! Let the poor man breathe. Shoo, shoo, leave him alone!" The group began to disperse, moving out of the way of Yura's sharp elbows and even sharper words. In a short while she made her way to them and grabbed Inu-yasha's elbow, leading him and Kagome off. She cleared a sofa in a relatively private corner by staring at its occupants until they remembered something important they had to do and scampered off, then gestured for Inu-yasha and Kagome to get seated. She herself perched on a convenient strand of hair, and looked intently at them both, looping her piece of string around her fingers.

"Still about Naraku?" she asked. "I don't think I know anything else than what I told you last time."

"But do you know anything about Kagura?" asked Inu-yasha. Yura's eyes lit up.

"Black, slightly wavy, tied up in a bun and decorated with feathers?" she asked.

Both agents blanched for several seconds, until Inu-yasha remembered Yura's obsession. "Oh, her hair," he said, realizing what his friend was talking about. "Actually, I don't know her, so I have no idea what she looks like. She works for Naraku, and is in charge of security."

"Yeah, that's the girl," said Yura, nodding. "She has one of those yucky spiders on her shoulder. Security, huh? That must be why she kept asking all those questions when we were doing the show there. She's always out and about, but she has time to be at the club a lot. I always saw her around the place when I was there. It always seemed like she was the one who kept things going smoothly. Doing a lot more than just security business, no doubt."

"Do you know what she's doing now?"

"Someone told me she went to Japan a while ago. But since a couple of weeks back she's been very quiet. No one's heard anything from her."

"Is that so strange?"

"Yeah, with Kagura it is," said Yura, drawing her hands apart quickly. Between her fingers the string criss-crossed itself, making a net. "She's like the spider in the web, knows what's going on everywhere. And where things are going on, she'll be. You don't see her, but you know she's there. And she always shows up at the big parties. But she wasn't at Peach Man's house-crasher last week, and she neglected even Nobunaga's killer of a pool party the week before. So I mean, something has to be wrong with her."

"Or maybe she's just achieved a better taste in parties?" smiled Inu-yasha. Yura glared at him, and he grinned disarmingly (and a little nervously). "Just kidding. OK, she hasn't been around. Know where she is? And why isn't she around?"

"I think she's hiding." Yura twisted the string around her hands like handcuffs. "On the run from the law… that's what I heard anyway. I have no idea where she is though." Yura looked away from him, the string and her hands together forming a house. "You going to the beach for your holidays, Inu-yasha?"

Kagome looked confused at this sudden change of subject, but Inu-yasha smiled, leaning back in the sofa and putting his hands behind his head.

"Yeah, thinking about it. Not sure where I'll go though. You got any suggestions?"

"Windy is said to be good."

"A beach that's called Windy? I'm not sure that's for me."

"You always used to say you wanted to try windsurfing." Yura shrugged. "And the _people_ there… are great."

"Well, maybe I'll try it," said Inu-yasha. He opened his notebook and scribbled down the name, then closed it again and stood up. "And I'll be sure to tell you if it's any good. Kagome, I think we're done. Shall we go?"

"Sure…" Kagome still looked confused, but soon the perplexed look gave way for a curious expression. "Inu-yasha, you're pretty well known here, it seems. Why?"

"La? Hasn't he told you?" grinned Yura, seemingly not noticing Inu-yasha's warning frown. "He used to work here, couple of years back. He and I were partners, as a matter of fact. And our little puppy boy was _so_ popular, weren't you, Inu-yasha?" She reached over and tweaked one of his ears fondly . "It's no wonder they all want him back. He was the best male stripper we ever had."

…………………….

"Stop laughing."

"HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!" was Kagome's reply, making Inu-yasha's scowl deepen.

"What's so bloody funny about it?" he asked angrily. Sheez, she had been laughing since they left the Happy Bunny! "I was making a living like any other person. You sure didn't laugh at Yura!"

"I just tried to imagine you stripping…" Kagome lapsed into another laughing fit. "And then… and then... and then I tried to imagine Sesshoumaru's face when he found out! God, he must have had a fit!" She started laughing again, holding her sides as if they ached. "Your prissy brother, having a stripper for a relative! HA HA HA HA HA!" Inu-yasha relaxed a little as she kept laughing, feeling that if the joke had been on Sesshoumaru and not on himself, it was more or less OK.

"It's not _that_ funny," he grumbled.

"Will you do me a private show one day?"

"No!"

"Damn."

As the time for lunch was nearing, they drove to the restaurant where Sango was waiting for them. However, she was not alone. When they arrived, both Kagome and Inu-yasha were very surprised – to say the least – to find Sango seated with Miroku, and deep in conversation with the same. Both looked up when the two agents arrived.

"There you are!" said Sango pleasantly. "I've been waiting for a while, you know!"

"You know them?" said Miroku, looking at her in surprise.

"_You_ know them?" Sango seemed just as surprised herself.

"You know each other?" said Kagome, staring from one to the other in disbelief. Both shook their heads.

"I saw this pretty lady sitting all by herself and offered to buy her a coffee," Miroku explained. "I thought, what a waste for her to be sitting alone! A woman like her deserves company." He gave Sango one of his most charming smiles. Inu-yasha was astonished to see that Sango did not seem to be bowled over by it, as were most women, but instead gave him a grin that said _I know exactly what you're doing, buddy. …I only happen to accept it for the time being._ One look at his friend told Inu-yasha that Miroku had seen this, and that he was loving it. Finally a girl he'd have to fight for.

"And you accepted it?" asked Kagome incredulously. Sango looked at her, eyebrows slightly raised.

"Well of course. It was a free coffee."

"She did check it for arsenic first though," Miroku added matter-of-factly.

"Oh alright then," said Kagome, sitting down at their table with a relieved sigh. "For a minute there I thought you'd completely lost your head. And if you don't mind me telling you, Sango, your paranoia is matched only by your stinginess…"

"So how is the case proceeding?" asked Miroku, once Inu-yasha had sat down as well. "You found out any nasty stuff about Naraku yet?"

"Actually, right now we're looking for Kagura," answered Inu-yasha. "Want to ask her some questions. We now know she's staying in a cottage at Windy Beach, so we're going to go see her."

"…What?" said Kagome. "Wait, how do we know that?"

"The last person we talked to told us, of course!" said Inu-yasha, as if this was completely natural.

"Who?" asked Miroku, ever the busybody.

"Can't tell you because of our secrecy policy."

"You have a secrecy policy?"

"Oh, I get it," said Kagome, lighting up. "Now I understand what you were talking about. You really confused me for a while there. Why couldn't you just have spoken about it out loud?"

"Because of _their_ secrecy policy," answered Inu-yasha. "Anyone in the underworld snitch, they're dead several days after. And the only reason it's several days after is because they're not allowed the privilege of a quick and clean death."

"That is an _effective_ secrecy policy."

They ate a nice lunch, talking about anything and everything with Miroku and Sango, who seemed to have become _very_ good friends, very quickly. When the two agents left the restaurant an hour later, neither of them noticed the small child who slipped off her stool and walked out after them.

………………………………

**elsiey:** Of course I'm interested in your theory:)

**AngeloflLight:** I'm not telling anything… yet…

**PD and KGIM:** You've got a very interesting name… what does it stand for?

**angelofdeath:** Thank you very much.:)

**Harei Sky:** Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks also for the compliment about Inu-yasha's insult. Writing the dialogue between the two brothers is one of my favourite things about this story.

**Inu-yasha'smistress:** Spiderman is a demon I've taken from the series – can you guess which one? (He's not called Spiderman in the real story though…)

**fires-light:** A secret? Tell me, tell me! :)


	14. Here's Naraku

**Here's Naraku**

"We're off to see Kagura, the wonderful Spider Club girl! If ever a Spider Club witch there was, Kagura the witch is one because… because, because, because, because, _becaaaauuse_… because of the wonderful things she does! TA-DAM-TA-DA-DA-DA-DAM! We're off to see Kagura, the wonderful Spider Club giiiiirl!"

"Will you quit it, please? You've been singing that song since we left the restaurant."

"I'll stop if you let me drive?"

"Keep singing…"

"I think they'll make a really weird couple."

"Huh?" Inu-yasha's mind did a three-sixty turn, trying to keep up with Kagome's wildly switching choice of conversation topic. God, was she hyper today or what? His mind was still trying to figure out which bloody way to take when Kagome went on, apparently realizing that her last comment had lacked a little in explanation.

"Sango and Miroku, I mean. A kick-boxer who reads "Guns and Ammo" and sees a clap on the shoulder as an assassination attempt, and a DJ with hands so wandering that they could've won the Annual American Walkathon without trouble. Imagine what their kids will look like – paranoid nymphomaniacs. I can see it before me now: "Hey handsome, is that a gun in your pocket or are you just happy to see me? …AAAH! IT'S A GUN, ISN'T IT?! YOU'RE TRYING TO KILL ME!!!" "

"You have way too much spare time if you spend it thinking about stuff like that," said Inu-yasha, once he had stopped laughing.

"What are we going to do about her?" asked Kagome, and then added for his benefit, "Kagura, that is."

"Can you stop changing the subject every ten seconds?" Inu-yasha was now feeling as if his mind was a piece of string that Yura had been playing with. "Um… Kagura. We ask her if she's the one in charge of the Shikon deal, if she answers yes we bust her ass and use her to get to Naraku."

"And if she answers no?"

"We know she's lying, so we bust her ass anyway and use her to get to Naraku."

"Sounds good."

………………………………..

"Here we are now," Inu-yasha said half an hour later as he pulled up in front of a small house. "Get in there and find out where she's staying." Kagome glared sourly at him, and he favoured her with his most innocent look. "What? You're the one who said you're good at finding out information…" Realizing she was beaten, Kagome stuck her tongue out at him and walked into the Rent-a-cottage/Tourist Information house.

"Only one cottage rented, that must be hers," she said as she issued from the house minutes later. "It's the one at the other end of the beach, so we better get walking."

"Can't we take the bike?"

"Absolutely not." Kagome looked sternly at him. "It pollutes the wonderful Mother Nature and is a despicable way of transport. We will not sacrilege the holy beach area by driving a disgusting motorbike over it."

"You like the beach, don't you?"

"Yup."

"You wouldn't have objections if you got to drive though."

"Ooh, can I?"

"No."

The beach was a large one and there was a good reason it had the name it had. The wind blew from every direction possible at the same time, which was rather a feat. (The wind always boasted about this to the other elements. They found it very irritating, and regarded the wind as a rather blown-up element.) It took about a quarter of an hour for the two agents to traverse the beach, and when they finally arrived at the cottage that was Kagura's they were both exhausted. They knocked on the door, but received no answer.

"Do we have to have a search warrant to enter her house?" asked Kagome, peeking through a window.

"Hello?" said Inu-yasha, rolling his eyes. "We're the YSA. Thought you'd understood by now we don't have any rules whatsoever."

"Just thought you might have developed a conscience."

"Don't make me laugh."

The door was unlocked, and they walked into the small house warily. _Alright, so this isn't exactly legal_, thought Inu-yasha, _but on the other hand she's not on the right side of the law, either. No one can blame us for just looking a little, right?_ The house seemed to lack any personal items, being quite empty and lifeless. Of course, if she was only renting it for a couple of weeks… still, one would have expected at least a coat or something! It was as if she had wanted to leave no trace of herself at all. It was hard to believe that anyone lived there – the house looked as if it had been deserted for weeks.

However, this was not the case.

Inu-yasha and Kagome were passing through the living room when somebody suddenly spoke, scaring the life out of both of them.

"Well, well, well. I think someone's about to get charged with breaking and entering." The two agents swivelled, seeing a high-backed chair standing in the other end of the room. Someone was sitting in it, with their back to Inu-yasha and Kagome, and this someone was now chuckling slightly. "Imagine that – two officers of the law behaving in such a sneaky fashion. Then again… I hear that the YSA doesn't always operate entirely legally."

"I think you'll find that we haven't broken anything yet," Inu-yasha replied, just to have something to say. He was trying to figure out who this person was, and how they knew about the YSA. It wasn't Kagura in any case – unless Kagura had had a sex change (the voice was very much male).

"Simply entering then," said the voice indifferently. "But don't worry… I'm a nice person. I won't be nasty and call the cops – because I know more than anybody else how unpleasant that is. And besides, I imagine you have a completely innocent reason for coming here. You wished to speak to Kagura, didn't you?"

"Where is she?" asked Inu-yasha. He was suddenly getting a bad feeling from this…

"Kagura had to go away," said the voice, and there was a certain edge to it. "For her… health. However, I am free to answer any questions you may have." The chair turned, revealing a man dressed in a crisp, posh suit and with long, dark, wavy hair. "You can call me Naraku."

………………………

Several possible answers suggested themselves to Inu-yasha, such as "Naraku, you bastard! Die!", "You are hereby placed under arrest. Don't try to escape if you want to father children in the future" and "Pleased to meet you, you can call me Inu-yasha." He had no need to use any of them, however, since Kagome stepped into view. Naraku – who a moment ago had looked so calm, so composed – turned chalk white upon catching sight of her, mouthing silently, his face a mask of terror.

"Y – you!" he managed.

"No," said Kagome quickly. "I am Kagome Higurashi, and I don't know you. _At all_."

Inu-yasha would wonder a lot about that reply later.

"Oh, alright," said Naraku, taking hold of himself again and even smiling. He gestured hospitably towards two leather chairs beside him, turning his swivelling chair to face them. "Please, do sit down. I can't bear to see you standing while I'm feeling so comfortable myself. As I said, I will be quite pleased to tell you anything you want to know – within certain limits. Then of course, it is up to you to decide if you want to believe me or not."

In a daze, Inu-yasha and Kagome sat down. Inu-yasha didn't know what his partner was thinking, but he did know that this was not how he had pictured his meeting with the most slippery criminal in the city. And there was something very disturbing about Naraku's voice… a feeling that he'd heard it somewhere else…

"Did you have Kohaku Gari kidnapped just to land Goshinki in jail?" asked Kagome. Inu-yasha blinked, looking over at Kagome in surprise. It wasn't exactly the opening question he'd have expected.

"Very clever," Naraku replied, raising an eyebrow. "Yes, the bastard was getting rather too restless. Wanting a larger share of everything, wanting to quit the business, wanting so called "freedom" for him and his sister… he and Kagura were never any of my most loyal employees. So I set up the kidnapping and turned him in. Simple as that."

"The story about using Kohaku as a burglar was a fake story you fed Goshinki?"

"Of course." Naraku sneered. "If I had wanted to use that whelp I would have chosen a rather less unpleasant way of meeting him. I have found that kidnapping someone seldom makes them friendly inclined towards me. Goshinki lacked the brains to see that." (_Always knew he was stupid_, thought Inu-yasha with satisfaction.) "He was loyal, though. Didn't say a word in court, which impressed me, I must say. Of course, he didn't know that I'd been the one to call the dear YSA…"

"You were the snitch," said Inu-yasha abruptly. "I knew I recognized your voice. You were the one who tipped us off about Goshinki."

"Exactly," said Naraku, without a trace of remorse.

"Tell us about Kohaku's father," said Kagome quietly. Naraku looked nonplussed for several seconds before lighting up in remembrance.

"Ah yes, Mr Gari! Do you know, I had not noticed that they were related until just now. What a coincidence! The world really is small, isn't it." He paused, seemingly delighted, then went on. "Very well, Mr Gari. He was a regular at the club – a gambler. Not a very skilled one, I'm afraid… He owed me great sums of money before his untimely passing. Debt and also some… extra contributions to the club. In exchange for my silence regarding his activities at the club."

"Blackmail."

"That is such a vulgar word!" Naraku looked pained. "_Voluntary contributions in exchange for services rendered_ is the phrase I would rather have you use."

"Did you kill him?" asked Kagome, still in that quiet, dangerous voice.

"Heavens, no!" Naraku looked shocked. "What would be the gain in that? He provided me with a large amount of money every month. To kill that man would be idiotic! No, I'm afraid Mr Gari simply did not want to go on with his life anymore. A pity. It is always sad to see strong, healthy, and above all _rich_ people pass away. He still owed me two grand. Nice as I am, though, I have not contacted his remaining family about it."

"You disgust me," said Kagome.

"Thank you, dear."

"You've got some nerve." Inu-yasha was digging his claws into the arm of his leather chair, trying not to lose his temper. "We will have you for this. Bastard." Naraku lifted one corner of his mouth in quiet amusement.

"You will have a hard time proving your case," he said dispassionately. "Mr Gari did not transfer so much as a penny to my account. You will find, however, if you go through his bank account, that he made very generous donations to the Red Cross on a monthly basis. Amazing, isn't it… how even the most selfless people – like, say, a Red Cross worker – can be bought for just the right amount of money?"

"I've changed my mind," said Kagome slowly. "To say you disgust me would be to big of an understatement."

"So how do you feel about me then?" asked Naraku, a mocking smile upon his lips.

"I'll tell you when I've made up a word ugly enough."

"Who's your girlfriend, Naraku?" asked Inu-yasha suddenly. The question caught the other man off guard, he could tell, and he grinned with satisfaction. Bingo.

"My, how personal this conversation has turned." Naraku smiled, trying to look indifferent but wavering slightly. "I have no girlfriend at the moment."

"Maybe not, but you had. A powerful priestess, who you betrayed."

"I – do not know what you are talking about." Inu-yasha saw the other demon's eyes flick towards Kagome for a fraction of a second before Naraku regained his composure. "And that subject is off-limits. I don't wish to discuss my personal life with you. The YSA really has a very strange form of interrogation."

Kagome and Inu-yasha shared a look. Naraku obviously found the subject an uncomfortable one, but pressing him wasn't likely to lead to any new information – rather, the risk was greater that he'd get angry and refuse to tell them anything else. To drop the subject for a while would probably be better.

"Who told you we'd be coming here to see Kagura?" asked Kagome. Naraku smiled.

"Kanna!" he called imperiously. The door to the next room opened and what seemed like a young girl of maybe thirteen, fourteen years stepped through. But her eyes were dark and empty, and far too wise for a youth. She was carrying a large, round mirror with both hands. Naraku beckoned her to his side and put a hand on her shoulder. "This is Kanna, one of my employees. She may look young, but this is not the case. She was the one who overheard you today in the restaurant, and hastened to tell me. You see, Kanna is a demon of nothingness. She is rather good at not being noticed. And she has a very useful mirror… why don't you show them, Kanna?"

The girl clutched the mirror to her. The reflection in the glass blurred and Kagome and Inu-yasha found themselves looking at a recording, it seemed, of their lunch with Sango and Miroku. Their voices sounded faintly from within the mirror…

…"We now know that she's staying in a cottage at Windy Beach, so we're going to go see her."

"A useful mirror indeed," smiled Naraku as the two agents stared at it, dumbstruck. "It can do a lot of wonderful things – even steal souls. Of course we never use it for that purpose," he continued smoothly, "but it's interesting, isn't it? Fantastic what uses a seemingly unimportant object can be put to in the right hands."

"And yours are the right hands, I presume?" asked Kagome icily.

"Not at all. I can't work it. Kanna is the only one with that skill."

The girl smiled to herself, a quiet, satisfied smile, and hugged the mirror to her again. "Pleasure to meet you," she said in a lilting, childish voice, smiled that quiet smile again, and left the room silently. Naraku looked after her, shaking his head slowly.

"Do you know, sometimes I feel like this is child labour," he said conversationally. "She looks so young, does she not? And yet she is probably not much younger than myself. A strange child…"

"What is your connection to the Shikon deal?" asked Inu-yasha abruptly. Naraku looked mildly surprised.

"None."

"Oh no, of course," said Inu-yasha sarcastically. "The invisible hand again. Let me rephrase the question: What is Kagura's connection to the Shikon deal?"

"None that I know about," said Naraku calmly.

"You cool bastard." Inu-yasha shook his head. "I just can't believe you. We'll get proof of your involvement somehow though, and when we do you won't just be facing a year or two in prison…"

"I believe there was a hitch there." Naraku leaned forward, putting his elbows on his knees and resting his chin on his hands. "Prove it," he said softly.

"Did I mention that I really don't like you?" asked Kagome, rising from her chair and pulling on Inu-yasha's sleeve. "Come on, we've wasted to much time on this bastard as it is. Goodbye, Naraku. I hope that next time we meet face to face, there will be bars between us."

"That can be arranged," said Naraku pleasantly. "There's still the question of breaking and entering…"

"Prove it," snapped Kagome. "And it was only entering."

………………………..

"Cold ones like that are the ones I just can't handle," snarled Kagome as they sped on their way homewards. "Bloody snobs, think they're perfect just because they dress like fucking Beau Brummel…"

"We really need to find a connection though," said Inu-yasha thoughtfully. "I'm sure we can provide evidence enough to link Kagura to the case. But we need the link between her and Naraku. So the question is how we're going to get that…"

"Are those friends of yours?"

"How many times do I have to tell you not to change the subject like – " The rest of Inu-yasha's sentence was cut short as the group of men that Kagome had pointed out opened fire. At them.

…………………………

_References:_ The melody to the song Kagome sings in the beginning is "We're off to see the wizard" from The Wizard of Oz. Just wanted to make that clear :)


	15. What a clown

What a clown 

Inu-yasha swerved wildly, braking at the same time and leaving long, black marks on the street. They threw themselves off the bike simultaneously and ducked behind a nearby cluster of garbage cans. The bullets whistled around them, thankfully missing their goal.

"Got a gun?" panted Inu-yasha, pulling out his own. Kagome shook her head, but produced her long knives. Sticking her head out around the side of the garbage can quickly, she threw one, hitting a man in the leg before she hastily drew her head back in. Inu-yasha was meanwhile firing his own gun whenever he had the chance. Another quick peek told Kagome that they were facing four men, one bleeding profusely from his leg (she grinned in satisfaction) and one nursing his arm, probably where he had been hit by Inu-yasha. She threw another knife, narrowly missing a third man, then ducked back behind the shelter again.

"Two wounded, that's half of them more or less down," she whispered. "Take care of them for a while, I need to fix a knife." Inu-yasha nodded wordlessly and she crouched down, putting her hands around the knife and concentrating. When was done she straightened up and threw the knife right at the man who looked most likely to be the leader. She crouched down before she had time to see what effect it had, but judging from the scream she had succeeded.

"What did you do?" asked Inu-yasha in wonder, peeking above his garbage can. "He looks pretty bad…"

"Enhanced the knife, that's all." She wiped her brow with her sleeve – the effort had tired her. "It seems they've stopped shooting. Can you see what's happening?"

Carefully, Inu-yasha looked out again.

"They're leaving," he said incredulously. Kagome straightened up to stand beside him, ready to crouch down again if necessary, but the men (one hobbling badly, bent over with a gaping cut in his stomach) were running down the street and not sparing them so much as either a glance or a bullet. Squinting after them, Inu-yasha thought he could make out a yellow-and-black-striped insect on the backs of their leather jackets. "Hey, that's the Saimyosho gang! They're the best killers in town!"

"So they were hired," said Kagome tightly. "And I think we can guess by whom. Help me gather up the knives, I lost one the night by The Three-eyed Bull and I don't want to lose anymore if we're going to have Naraku's henchmen on us now."

The knives were found easily, and they returned to the bike feeling victorious. A feeling that, for Inu-yasha at least, soon shattered.

"My biiiiike!"

The poor Speed Demon was badly wounded, the front wheel twisted to one side, the saddle a complete mess, the body spotted with bullet holes and long scratches.

"That does it." Inu-yasha's eyes were burning with a hatred so strong that Kagome shrank back from him in alarm. "Naraku is going DOWN!!!"

…………………………

"What's the matter with him?" asked Sesshoumaru as they returned home, Inu-yasha hollow-eyed and in a state of shock.

"Heartbreak," whispered Kagome, gently leading Inu-yasha to his room and shutting the door behind him. "We were attacked by the Saimyosho gang who started shooting at us, and his motorbike took a lot of hurt. I'm afraid it was a rather traumatic experience."

"What?! You could have been killed!"

"Oh yes, that too."

"How bad was it?"

"Pretty awful. The chariot was almost completely ripped apart by the bullets and let's not talk about the paint. It's going to take a lot of work to – "

"I don't mean about the damn bike!" snapped Sesshoumaru in frustration. "Are you alright? Were you hurt, either of you?"

"Well, not physically."

Sesshoumaru sighed in relief, then looked towards Inu-yasha's room.

"Maybe this isn't the time then… a lead on Kagura has turned up. I only just finished deciphering it." He waved a note from Shippou. It contained clowns. "Says here… OK, I was never good at Art in school but I think it says here a guy rented out a warehouse to Kagura, so that might be worth checking out. You ought maybe to wait for a bit though, until Inu-yasha is feeling well up to it."

"We'll go now." Inu-yasha suddenly stood beside them, his mouth set in a grim line. "Naraku's not getting away with this. Let's have it, Sesshoumaru – who are we going to see?"

"I really think you should wait – "

"I'm not that weak."

"But it… well, it's too late anyway and – "

"Give me the name."

"You won't like it." Sesshoumaru looked at his brother and sighed. "Jakotsu."

Inu-yasha paled.

"You know what?" he said, after a minute's pause. "It _is_ rather late, now that I think about it. I think we should probably wait until tomorrow before rushing off again. Don't you think Kagome? Good. G'night to you both." He turned on his heel and went back to his room, shutting the door behind him. The hand on the doorknob was trembling.

"But what – " Kagome began, looking utterly perplexed, and was interrupted.

"You'll see," said Sesshoumaru darkly. "You'll see."

…………………………

Inu-yasha drank a very large cup of very black coffee for breakfast the morning after, looking as if he was gathering his strength. Kagome watched him curiously.

"So is this guy very dangerous, or what?"

"You could say that, yes," Inu-yasha replied carefully. "You could also say that he's a homicidal maniac with an alarming fetish for shiny weapons. And, he's just plain scary."

"Ah."

Their expedition that day took them to the other end of town, to a flashy, brightly-coloured sign bearing the words "The Zombie Seven". It was decorated with smiling faces, rabbits and balloons. Kagome regarded it in disbelief.

"He seems like a terrifying person, working here," she said. Inu-yasha made a noise that could have been irritation or assent, she wasn't sure, and grabbed her wrist, pulling her with him through the door and up to the reception desk.

"Jakotsu? Doing street work today," the man behind the desk answered Inu-yasha's question. He had long hair worn in a braid and was toying with a large, sharp letter-opener, twirling it expertly between his fingers, throwing it into the air and catching it again when it was but a hair's breath from hitting his legs (casually propped up on the desk). A tag on his chest – green, with sparkly stars on it and writing in bright orange – showed that his name was Bankotsu. "You'll find him at the crossing of Georgia and Pullman Street. I wouldn't bring her though." He gestured towards Kagome with the letter-opener. She flushed angrily and started forward, but Inu-yasha stopped her with a gesture, muttering that he'd explain later. Bankotsu looked with interest between them.

"Will you two be having kids soon, then?" he asked. He quickly swung his legs off the desk and leaned forward, giving them a business-like smile that positively _screamed_ "I want your money". "You know where to turn when they have their seventh birthday! We have a special bargain for seven-year-olds, seeing as it's our lucky number, really…"

"She's not my girlfriend," sighed Inu-yasha. "See you, Ban."

"The offer still stands!" shouted Bankotsu after them as they left the office.

……………………………

"They're clowns. Work at kids' parties and do small shows on the street with a hat out for money, sort of thing."

"I wouldn't let that man within fifty feet of my kid! He was playing with something that made my knives look puny!"

"He's actually quite charming when he wants to."

"He's a lunatic!"

"Everyone has their faults."

They found the man they were looking for in a street corner where the two streets Georgia and Pullman met, just like Bankotsu had said. A man with green stripes on his face was making animals out of balloons, while another – with a head cloth that made him look like a pirate – was pulling ribbons out of children's ears and producing flowers from his shirt sleeves. However, Kagome guessed immediately that the third man, the one who was juggling eight gleaming, sharp swords in the air, was Jakotsu – the one they had come to see. How? Female intuition.

Alright, the fact that he shrieked and came close to dropping his swords when he saw Inu-yasha helped, too.

"Inu-yasha daaarling!" exclaimed the man. He wore clown make-up like the other two, but hadn't stopped at that. He had added lipstick and mascara as well. "You should have told me you were coming, I'd have worn something nicer! So long since I saw you! Of all my boyfriends you are still my favourite. Can I have a kiss?"

"No," said Inu-yasha uncomfortably, taking a small step backwards. This brought Kagome into focus, and Jakotsu's eyes narrowed.

"And who are _you_?" he asked with distaste, the swords he was juggling forming a bright, flashing circle between his hands. Kagome frowned and was about to answer when Inu-yasha grabbed her arm and yanked her forcefully to one side – dragging her out of the path of a sword which had somehow left the circle and sped towards her.

"Oops, slipped," said Jakotsu.

"She's not my girlfriend," said Inu-yasha, before the other man had time for any more accidental slips. "Put those down please? I'm here on business, need to ask a couple of questions."

"And here I thought you'd finally worked up the nerve to ask me out," said Jakotsu sulkily, catching the swords one by one in his hand and putting them in a basket beside him. "Oh well. Come over here, we have a couple of chairs for rest between shows. Lady, why don't you take this one? It's the most comfortable of them." He put his hands on the back of a wicker chair, pushing it towards her. Kagome looked surprised and confused, but sat down gratefully and was just about to lean back when she sprang up again. Reaching behind the back, she pulled out a long knife that had been stuck in the chair, the point of which would have skewered her.

"Can't imagine who left that there," said Jakotsu.

"She's not my girlfriend, Jakotsu," Inu-yasha repeated, with a dangerous edge to his voice. "Just because I've chosen to be nice to you doesn't mean I can't still lock you up, OK? This is our new agent, Kagome Higurashi."

"Still a woman," muttered Jakotsu, but smiled quite graciously as he took her hand. If his crushing handshake wasn't quite as gracious, what of it? No one is perfect, after all.

"You rented out a warehouse a while ago, didn't you?" asked Inu-yasha as Kagome clenched her teeth shut, biting off the groan of pain, and shook her hand to try and restore some life into it. "Can you tell us why and to whom?"

"The old offices," said Jakotsu promptly. "No need of those anymore, so we decided to make some profit of them. And it was some woman who got hold of them." He snorted, disinterested. "Can't recall anything about her, I'm afraid, but she was like any other woman… boring… ugly…"

"Does the name Kagura sound familiar?"

"Might have been her." Jakotsu shrugged, then his eyes suddenly blazed with anger. "Wait, I remember! She was the insolent little bitch who had copied my hairstyle! Do you know her?"

"Um, not really… don't know what she looks like…"

"Well, she had copied it anyway," Jakotsu seethed. "Only not exactly, she'd added some extremely tasteless feathers and stuff. And I mean, it really didn't look good on her (not that anything would). My hair is prettier. Don't you think so? Isn't my hair nice?" He looked up at Inu-yasha with big puppy-eyes, fluttering his long eyelashes. Inu-yasha seemed unsure of what to say, finally deciding on the diplomatic answer.

"Er… yes, of course."

"YAY!" shrieked Jakotsu, making them both jump a foot into the air. "Inu-yasha likes my hair!" he shouted delightedly at his two friends, who shook their heads sadly and went on with their separate shows. Kagome, meanwhile, had not been able to hinder her snort of laughter, and was rewarded for it when Jakotsu slammed his elbow down hard onto her hand where it was resting against the arm of her chair, making her cry out with the sudden, shocking pain.

"I can be so dreadfully clumsy sometimes," said Jakotsu.

"Do you have a written document of your deal with Kagura?" asked Inu-yasha, trying to signal to Kagome to remain calm – right now she looked ready to commit murder. "We're going to need it as court evidence. If you have, could you copy it and have it sent to me? To the office, that is. Oh, and the address to the warehouse too, please."

"Anything for you, Inu-yasha," said Jakotsu, with a smile that even Kagome found scary. "Of course we have the papers, can't get anything done without them today, right? And it's not as if we run an illegal business, is it? We're all devote followers of the law here… I'll get the paperwork for you without trouble. If you want, I could drop them by at your house personally?"

"No!" Inu-yasha exclaimed, then recovered himself quickly. "No, I wouldn't want you to go through the trouble. Besides, I'm just… er… moving! That's right, moving. So I don't have an… uh… an address right now. But it would be great if you could send them to us in due time. And _look_ at the _time_!" He glanced at his watch and started from his chair. "We really have to run. Bye, give my regards to Bankotsu!"

"Ah, Bankotsu…" said Jakotsu dreamily, a small smile gracing his lips. "You know, Inu-yasha, one day I might just get tired of waiting for you and choose Bankotsu instead." At this Inu-yasha had to work hard to conceal the relief flooding his face. Jakotsu, seeing this but misreading his expression, laughed gaily. "Oh, don't worry! I'm only toying with you. You remain my dream boy, now and forever."

"Yay," said Inu-yasha dully. He waved goodbye to the other two members of the Zombie Seven and walked towards his bike (a rented bike. Alas, for the loss of the Speed Demon.). Kagome followed, narrowly avoiding a wild slash of Jakotsu's long, lethal-looking hairpin as he stood up.

"Stumbled," said Jakotsu.

………………………..

Hey everybody! The day after tomorrow I leave for my second home, Australia. (Need I say that I'm so happy and excited I can hardly sit still?) This means, however, that updates over the next month will be sporadic and might not take place at all. But please be happy for me anyway… cute smile Please don't throw things at me… anyway, I'll try to update but I just wanted to warn you in case I can't. So now you know. Ciao!


	16. The Bridge reloaded

The Bridge - reloaded

"How did you get to know that guy?" asked Kagome. They were sitting at a sushi bar and eating lunch, Inu-yasha visibly shaking.

"Prison," he replied shortly.

"You've been in prison?" When Inu-yasha nodded she seemed to consider this for a while, the shrugged. "Don't want to know why. But how come Jakotsu got landed in jail? Cruel homicide of eighteen women with his bare nails?"

"No, that was earlier," said Inu-yasha, then spotted the look on her face. "Just kidding. No, the reason he was in prison was a… a sort of murder attempt. You know the Fab Five? From "The Queer Eye for the Straight Guy"? Well, originally they were supposed to be the Sleek Six, but Jakotsu flipped when he wasn't allowed to be the fashion guy and had the biggest catfight you can ever imagine with Carson. By the time security got to the place Jakotsu had him up against the wall and was threatening to strangle him with a no-designer tie."

"Ooooow." Kagome winced. "Now _that_ is ugly. Non-designer, even? I would've liked to hear what Carson had to say to that."

"Unfortunately he was having trouble speaking at the time on account of the coat hanger shoved down his throat."

As Inu-yasha still felt a bit shaken from the experience, they decided to call it a day. When they arrived home at the apartment they found an envelope lying on the living room table, addressed to Kagome.

"Ooh, it's from Sota!" said Kagome excitedly. "He promised to nick some photos for me."

"Of what?"

"Oh, nothing important. Just court pictures from trials with a special meaning for myself, they won't be missed… Just something for fun."

"And you say I have no scruples. Who are you to talk, getting pictures nicked for the sheer fun of it!"

"Ooh look, here's Naraku!"

"Don't you try and distract – where."

"Here, see?" It was a photo of the audience during a trial. Kagome beckoned him to sit down beside her and pointed to a spot in the left corner. "This is from Goshinki's trial. See here's Naraku, right there. He's braided his hair and he's wearing dark glasses, but there's no mistaking that smirk."

"You're right. Imagine how that must have riled the poor bastard."

"Aw, you're finally feeling sorry for Goshinki! I knew you'd come around!"

"I meant the judge, actually."

Kagome stuck her tongue out at him and left the photo in his hands, continuing to flick through the rest of the bunch. Inu-yasha was going to put it aside when something caught his eye. "Hey look, there's miss Miko." Kagome glanced at the photo again and smiled.

"No, idiot. That's me."

"But…" Inu-yasha looked from the picture to Kagome and back again. "But you're in a suit!"

"Yeah, chief wouldn't let me go in jeans."

Inu-yasha shook his head, gazing intently at the picture.

"Man, you two could be twins." Kagome gave no reply, merely smiled absently and kept looking through the stack of photos, laughing fondly when she came across a trial or a judge she remembered extra well. Inu-yasha looked through the discarded photos, coming across more pictures of a well-dressed, serious-looking Kagome. Jesus, the resemblance between her and the lawyer was freaky. He'd have to see them together to tell the difference…

With a start he realized that he'd never seen the two of them together. And with a greater start he realized the theory this presented: maybe they were the same person? In the next moment he shook his head, thinking that the ordeal of meeting Jakotsu had worn him down even more than he had thought. That was a really _stupid_ theory. If that were so, miss Miko wouldn't have said things that contradicted what Kagome said.

Unless, of course, she had some really weird scheme of wanting it to seem like what she said was not adding up and…

Somewhere around that point Inu-yasha lost track of his own thoughts. Just to have something to do – to stop thinking things that made even himself confused – he pulled out his mobile phone, frowning when he saw the display.

"I have sixteen missed calls, how did that happen?"

"Did you turn the sound back on after this morning?"

Damn. He'd put it on mute after the first alarm went off, hadn't he? (Not that it mattered, since Kagome had brutally shaken him awake anyway.)

"That would explain it," he muttered, swearing to himself never to use the mute function again. He'd just put the sound back on when the phone rang again. "Nick of time," he said, feeling very pleased with himself, and pushed the answering button.

"Inu-yasha's – "

"A CELL PHONE IS BEST USED WHEN TURNED ON, YOU FUCKING GREAT MORON!"

" – hi Koga. Didn't Shippou have a talk with you about civil language?"

"I've been trying to call you for one bloody hour, idiot! You know, it's really much easier to talk to you when you ANSWER MY BLOODY CALLS!"

"If I hold the phone three feet away from my ear I think the fractures on my eardrums will be small enough to allow you to pay for the emergency surgery."

"There is a hostage situation down at the Red Bridge concerning one of our cases and I've been trying like hell to contact ANY possible YSA member so you're really not choosing your time right, Inu-yasha. I want you to get down there as fast as you bloody can, OK?"

"A hostage situation?" Inu-yasha grew instantly serious. "Shit, since when?"

"An hour! Why do you think I've been bloody trying to get hold of you?"

"Well, where are you?"

"I'm stuck aren't I? I'm twenty-five miles away and this road block doesn't seem like it's going to move within the next three days!"

"How do you know about it then?"

"Spiderman."

"He's the only one there? Couldn't you get hold of _anybody _else than Spiderman?!"

"That's why I want you to get your ass down there, moron! Stop talking and get out! I left a message on the office phone so the ones on duty will probably be down there by now but oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck. Oh shit, we're _doomed_."

"What?" Inu-yasha heard the dread in Koga's voice, and with a sinking feeling in his stomach, realized what it foreboded. And just when you thought the day just couldn't get any worse.

"Koga, who's on office duty today?"

………………………………..

"You know what bothers me most about criminals?" asked Ginta, tightening his grip on the former hostage-taker's chin. The man shook his head mutely. "It's the smell. I feel… _saturated_ by it…"

"You will have the right to a phone call, of course," Hakkaku said pleasantly to the other former hostage-taker, now man-close-to-peeing-his-pants-with-fear. The two wolf demons had vaulted down from the fifty feet high cables that steadied the bridge, landing without even breaking a sweat and had from there proceeded to beat the crap out of them. And there was something in their eyes which scared the two men stupid. A manic glint of… something. So this was what _really _happened to kids who watched too much TV.

"However… what good is a phone call… if you can't – speak? Bwahahahahaha!"

Ginta frowned at his… second cousin… twice removed?… whatever.

"That evil laugh wasn't in the movie!"

"I know, but it just felt… appropriate, somehow."

"You do not change the holy script!"

"You're right, what have I done?! Sorry sorry sorry! Holy Hugo Weaving, please don't punish me!"

…and with the two cousins something or other thus occupied, guess who was left to comfort the former hostages? That's right.

"It's during moments like these I really, really wish I was a Man In Black, with one of those little sticks that make people forget everything, you know?" said Inu-yasha, as they pulled up at the bridge, now jammed with cars and people. The police had found their way there already but, Inu-yasha noted wryly, had as of yet not dared to approach the two YSA agents (now praying forgiveness from The Great One, Keanu Reeves). "Can you handle the hostages and get Spiderman away from them as tactfully as possible? He starts to cry if he doesn't feel appreciated. And you remember what I told you happened the last time he cried in public?" Kagome shivered, nodded and ran off. Inu-yasha parked the bike, then ran towards the scene, hoping fervently that Jinenji would show up. He would probably be needed when dealing with the cops.

"Ginta and Hakkaku, shut up right now or I'll confiscate your DVD-set," he hissed as soon as he was within hearing distance. The police had tried to stop him from going through, saying that there were two dangerous lunatics out there and he'd better wait for the back-up, but he had ignored them. That would probably earn him a warning. Ah, the things you do for your friends.

He suddenly recalled an evening at the Black Bridge two months earlier, with a rather similar situation, and in the end, outcome. He wondered if he could persuade the local cinema to ban Ginta and Hakkaku completely from watching Matrix movies.

And while he was at it, he should probably try to convince the videostore of the same.

At the threat about their DVD-set, the two wolf demons snapped right to attention, gripping the arms of their respective prisoner.

"Handcuffed and ready," said Ginta. Inu-yasha took hold of both men, drawing them close to him.

"Make a deal? You be nice and quiet about this and accept your sentence without too much whining, and I won't let the two maniacs visit you while you're in prison. Sound fair?"

"Lovely," gulped one man, while the other silently nodded.

"Great," said Inu-yasha, smiled nicely – well, more or less nicely – and turned around to face the staring group of people. "All OK now!" he yelled loudly. "Our two agents here managed to take control of the situation, no trouble. Officers, if you'd be so kind as to take these men? I'm sure you will want to interrogate them. We will of course be willing to assist in _any way we can_," here he looked meaningfully at the two men by his side, who swallowed uneasily and on the spot swore to themselves to confess everything, "so I'll leave you our number and we'll be on our way, alright? You will probably want to hear the freed hostages as well, but for the moment we'd like them to remain in our care, they've just had a severe shock and as they are our clients I'm sure they'd be happy to recover for a while among known people before confronting this traumatic incident, here are our hostage-takers, there's the car, gentlemen, watch your head, in you go, thank you very much, we have to be going."

"Just a minute!" said the highest-ranking officer, and Inu-yasha froze in his tracks. Slowly, he turned to face the officer, smiling and oh-so-ready to help.

"Yes?" he asked politely.

"I don't know how long you were here for, but didn't the – er – battle seem a little… one-way? As in… rather a hammering from the one side than a regular fight?"

"Oh yes," boomed Inu-yasha, slipping smoothly into the role of the jovial, a tad slow high-ranker. "But my boys pulled through at the end, didn't they? Grand finish, if I may say so myself. Always nice to see a good arrest. Lucky the boys were here so quick, by the way, eh?" The sentence contained an entire rose bush of silent barbs against the police force.

"Yes, yes, of course," said the officer nervously. Inu-yasha nodded, but sensed that the man was not finished. Damn it, just what he needed now – a clever man in charge. "Um… do you by any chance know why your men were shouting Matrix quotes…?"

"Mai-ching," said Inu-yasha. "An Asian technique, apparently. Psyches the "crim's", gets them right where we want them. The boys are masters of the art. Fascinating, isn't, what those foreign blighters are capable of, eh? You ought to teach it to your crew as well!" He laughed and gave the officer a hearty slap on the back, making the man stumble forward.

"Mai-ching," said the officer weakly. "How about that."

Sensing that he had won this time, Inu-yasha laughed again and shook the man's hand vigorously, then walked off to see how Kagome was doing. He left the officer with a vague feeling that the personality he just had been faced with ought to have belonged to a man with a hundred-and-fifty pound body, red face, at least fifty years behind him and a love for fat cigars.

…………………………

It was two very weary agents that stumbled homewards two hours later.

"I swear that Lady Luck has something against me," muttered Inu-yasha. "I can't get even one afternoon off without something like this interrupting my rest. Good job with the hostages, by the way. You handled Spiderman really well."

"Thanks," sighed Kagome, clutching her head. "I asked him to go and buy some chocolate for them and said I couldn't carry enough."

"He certainly has enough hands to manage. Well, it was good that you got him out of the way." Inu-yasha sighed deeply. "Nothing against the man, he's nice and all and an able agent… it's just that he's not really the first thing one should see when recovering from shock. Great person to have with you on a camping though. Throw a blanket over him and you have a tent."

As they opened the door to their apartment, Sesshoumaru came rushing towards them. Much to the surprise of both Inu-yasha and Kagome he grabbed the former in his arms, hugging him tight.

"Inu-yasha, you make your brother so proud!" he exclaimed. Inu-yasha's reply was somewhat muffled, seeing as his face was pressed into Sesshoumaru's shoulder, but it ran somewhere along the lines of _"What the hell's the matter with you?!"_ Sesshoumaru straightened up and gripped his brother's shoulders tightly. "Koga told me how well you did at the hostage situation. You used _smooth talk_! You do take after me! I am so proud."

"Glad to hear it," said Inu-yasha weakly.

"Oh yes, and this arrived for you," Sesshoumaru continued, collected once more. He held out an A4-size envelope, which was decorated with hearts. "From Jakotsu."

"Did he come here?" asked Inu-yasha, looking panicky.

"No, Shippou dropped it off."

"Thank goodness, that means he still doesn't know where I live." Inu-yasha opened the envelope and looked through the contents, fishing out a small note. "Here's the address, Kagome! Great, he remembered it. We'll go and check it out tomorrow."

"And you're to call miss Miko and give her an update on the case."

"Oh." Inu-yasha hesitated. "Do you want to give her a call, Kagome, or should I?"

"Call her," said Kagome indifferently. "I've got some things of my own to see to. Besides, she probably knows you better." She turned and left, and Inu-yasha looked after her, stirred by some emotion he could not put words to. Then he shook his head, wondering what was wrong with him these days, and dialled miss Miko's number.

"Kikyo Miko."

"Hello, miss Miko, this is Inu-yasha from the YSA. You wanted briefing on the case, about Naraku…?" While he talked, Inu-yasha walked casually towards Kagome's door, halting just as casually outside it and perking his ears.

"Yes, of course," said miss Miko eagerly, and Inu-yasha was relieved to notice that Kagome's room was meanwhile silent – meaning she was not miss Miko. Alright, so it had been the most stupid and far-fetched idea he'd ever had, but Inu-yasha had since long learned not to leave any hunches unchecked.

"How far have you come?" Miss Miko's words recalled Inu-yasha to reality.

"Oh, pretty far," he said, wondering if that was strictly true. They still had pretty many loose ends… "We've just got hold of a very interesting lead, so we should have this wrapped pretty soon. What we really need right now is a link between Naraku and one of his employees, Kagura. I think we have Kagura's part in the deal pretty much worked out, we just have to gather a bit of evidence… If we can only show that there is a connection between her and Naraku we can probably pin this on him. So that's what we'll be doing during the nearest days."

"Sounds wonderful," said miss Miko. "Well, I must say you've kept at it. Well done. I don't think we've discussed the payment yet…?"

"In due time," said Inu-yasha gallantly.

"Well then, the best of luck to you and the dear agent Higurashi. I'm sure the final piece in this puzzle will turn up quite soon. In fact, I'm absolutely certain of it. Oh, and one more thing… could you give agent Higurashi a message from me? Tell her… that things aren't always what they seem, are they?"

"What – "

"It's a quote from someone we were talking about the other day. Priestess Midoriko."

"But – "

"She knows what I mean."

And with that Kikyo Miko hung up on him, without so much as a word of goodbye.

……………………………..

"That lawyer chick is one snooty lady!" exclaimed Inu-yasha, coming into Kagome's room and throwing himself down onto her bed. "She hung up on me, just like that! God, she's been raised bad."

"You can say that again," muttered Kagome, staring intently at the screen of Sesshoumaru's laptop, which she had temporarily stole– er… borrowed from his room. "So did she tell you anything worthwhile? Is she doing any research of her own or is she letting us do all the dirty work only to sail in with the arrest when we're done and get all the publicity?"

"The latter, I think… All she said now was good luck, you'll probably have it wrapped soon, go you, that sort of thing. Oh! She wanted me to give you a message, too. Something about… things aren't always what they seem, are they? That was a quote, from someone called Midoriko. Hey, are you OK?" For Kagome suddenly had a stricken look on her face.

"Yeah, yeah." Kagome waved a hand vaguely. "It's just that it's such a horrible quote… I think it was right after she said that she was murdered by her own sister. It was good of miss Miko to look it up for me though." Kagome bent over the laptop again, frowning thoughtfully. Inu-yasha watched with interest.

"What are you doing there anyway?"

"Oh!" Kagome looked up, startled. "Nothing really important, just checking up on something. Hey, do you want food? I just realized I'm starving…" She snapped the laptop shut and stood up, and Inu-yasha lost the chance to ask again. Not that it was important, but…

…why was she so damn secretive about everything?

Aargh! This girl is turning me into a complete paranoid, thought Inu-yasha, with a frustrated sigh.

……………………………………

_References: _The Queer Eye for the Straight Guy is a show I adore, so I just had to include it. If you haven't seen it, it's about five gay guys who restyle people. It's just so damn cute. (And I want to marry Thom.)

If you've read anything by Agatha Christie, you'll probably recognize the personality Inu-yasha suddenly gets when he talks to the police officer. I'd been drugging myself with endless Agatha Christie novels when I wrote this chapter, and things like that tend to leave an impression…

Australia is wonderful, if you're interested. :)


	17. Like a thief in the night

Like a thief in the night...

Sota leapt off a roof and landed on another, slipping on the tiles and only saving himself from falling the seventy feet to the ground at the very last moment. He sat down quickly on the edge of the roof, putting his head in his hands and trying to breathe calmly. His head was spinning, his sense of balance disrupted and his thoughts disorganized. He'd been on his way somewhere… where? Home? Yes, that was probably it… home. Sleep. He so needed to sleep…

He shouldn't be taking to the roofs now, he knew. He was too exhausted, prone to making stupid mistakes in a world where one mistake could mean his death. He needed to get down to the streets, even though he couldn't find his way around down there... but that was the only smart thing to do. His mind thus made up, Sota pushed himself off the roof and dropped, landing lightly on a balcony here, catching hold of a drainpipe there. Within half a minute he stood on the ground, looking around himself.

OK. So where was home?

He picked the direction that seemed most likely and started walking.

……………………..

Inu-yasha woke with a start in the middle of the night. He'd just had a disturbing dream, in which Yura chased him with a giant pair of scissors. As he looked at the calendar on his wall he realized that the dream was guilt induced – it had been Yura's birthday the day before and he hadn't called. He jumped out of bed and rummaged among his clothes until he found his cell phone, then wrote a quick message with his congratulations. He was just about to get back to bed when he heard something in the living room. For a moment he felt tempted to ignore it – the bed looked very inviting indeed – but then he decided to at least go and take a look.

_Just to be on the safe side_, he thought, and opened his door.

…………………..

_I'm sure I've climbed this wall before_, thought Sota, frowning to himself. _Something about it says home… _He was a bit unsure he'd come to the right house, but on the other hand it was very familiar. He bit his lip, trying to remember exactly where it was he lived at the moment… he was so tired…

_Aargh, all these houses look the same from below anyway._ Shaking off the nagging doubt, Sota pulled on his gloves and started to climb.

……………………

There was definitely someone moving in the living room. Inu-yasha perked his ears, but couldn't recognize the footsteps. Was someone breaking into their flat? What could they possibly want to steal? Oh, whatever. Those bastards had chosen the wrong flat to break into! This flat had an Inu-yasha and was not afraid to use it!

Bloody lucky I decided to check it out after all, he thought, positioning himself just outside the living room. The footsteps – very soft ones, Inu-yasha noted – walked closer… and Inu-yasha leapt, landing on top of the intruder and pinning his arms to the floor.

"Help! A burglar!" yelled the burglar. Inu-yasha blinked.

"What?"

"What?"

"_I'm_ not the burglar here."

"Huh?" The burglar frowned in confusion and then, to Inu-yasha's astonishment, smiled. "Oh, you're Inu-yasha, aren't you? What are you doing here?"

Feeling as if the roles were somewhat reversed, Inu-yasha sat back and stared at the man. Slowly his memory made itself known and told him that this was Kagome's little brother Sota, a professional Thief. He stood up and offered Sota a hand up.

"You took the words out of my mouth," he said, frowning at the younger man. "This is my, Sesshoumaru's and Kagome's flat. And if you make mistakes like this often, that would explain all those random robberies that were all over the news last year."

Sota looked around himself, for the first time taking in his surroundings – a picture of Sesshoumaru and Inu-yasha hanging on one wall, yellow files stamped with the YSA logo scattered all over the table, Kagome's old jeans jacket lying thrown over one arm of the sofa. He sighed, picking up one of Kagome's court pictures from the table.

"I knew _something_ about it said home," he said, and then very gently fainted.

………………………

"You've been overdoing it again, haven't you," said Kagome accusingly, glaring at her younger brother. Inu-yasha had summoned her as soon as Sota fainted, thinking that she knew him best and would probably know what to do. She did. She briskly slapped him awake, put him on a sofa and forced some hot chocolate into him. "You promised me you'd take it easy. Why did you do me those court pictures, for example? I said do them when you have time on your hands!"

"I did, I was finished with those ages ago and I just dropped them off this morning on my way back from a job!" Sota defended himself. Now that he saw Kagome's brother in the lit-up room, Inu-yasha could see what she was driving at. Sota looked clearly unhealthy – he was pale and unshaven and huge yawns kept splitting his face in two.

"What have you been doing then?" Kagome demanded, clearly not satisfied. "You look like you haven't slept for seven days!"

"It's only six," yawned Sota, and then saw the horrified look on his sister's face. "Aw, come on, it's not that bad! You know I can go without sleep!"

"Obviously you can't!" snapped Kagome. "Have you been working for the cops again? When you get many jobs in a row you have to cancel some, how many times will I have to tell you this? You can't keep working both day and night!"

"I had to," said Sota, looking very tired now. "It was the Capulets, they booked five days in a row and you know they're regulars. You just don't cancel with regulars."

"Then you'd have to cancel the night jobs, idiot."

"But those were booked by the Montagues!"

"Er, excuse me," said Inu-yasha, feeling as if he had by mistake dropped into a Shakespeare play, "would you mind telling me why you're talking about Romeo and Juliet?"

"Sure." Sota smiled, looking very amused. "It's the most stupid story ever. I wish old William had still been alive to write about this… talk about bad moral… The thing was, you know how in the end of his story Romeo and Juliet killed themselves and the families realized how bad they'd behaved and became friends forever?" Inu-yasha nodded, and Sota went on, "Well, Shakespeare's story was based on something that actually happened, and at first everything went as the story said it did – the two families were all lovey-dovey and the bestest of buddies. Until, of course, someone raised the question of whose fault it had been that Romeo and Juliet actually died. The Capulets thought that Romeo had been an idiot to think that Juliet was really dead, and thus it was his fault as he committed suicide first and made Juliet do it too, in her despair. The Montagues, on the other hand, thought that it was Juliet's fault, for pretending to be dead without making sure that Romeo knew about it. And thus the old feud between the families blossomed again."

Sota paused to drink some more hot chocolate, and Kagome continued. "Both families prospered, and both families now have a large branch living in America, spread out over the country. And both families hate each other's guts. So they hire Sota to steal. The Montagues get him to steal old family heirlooms from the Capulets, and then triumphantly display them in their own house. Of course, the Capulets do the same thing… Both pay quite good, but they're a pain in the ass and I don't know why you haven't ever told them so." This last was to her brother, who sighed.

"Because I need them, Kagome, you know that. They're my main source of advertisement. Especially among the nobs. Oh!" he suddenly exclaimed, making both Inu-yasha and Kagome jump. "I just remembered – I needed to tell you something! You see, I was going to but I was so tired I forgot about it! Luck brought me to your house instead of my own!"

"I wouldn't call it luck," muttered Kagome, "rather lack of sleep, you great idiot. What did you want to tell me?"

Sota hesitated, throwing the merest glances towards Inu-yasha, who realized he was not welcome at the moment.

"I'll go and see if Sesshoumaru's been waken up by our racket," he said tactfully, getting up to leave. "And if he hasn't, I'll wake him up. Wouldn't want him to miss the fun." Kagome gave him a grateful look, making him swell with pride over his noble attitude. He wasn't one to pry into private matters, not him! …But as he walked down the corridor, he reflected that sometimes he would like to be.

Then he forgot all about his suspiciousness by sadistically jumping on Sesshoumaru's bed and singing "Breaking the Law" at the top of his voice until his brother woke up and threatened to throw him out of the window.

…………………………..

Hey everyone!

It wasn't a very nice New Year for me, hope yours were better. The tsunamis in southeast Asia disturbed many, and I hope you weren't among them. As for me, I finally heard from one friend who was in Thailand and I'm pretty sure the other one who was there is OK as well. The guy I heard from seemed shaken though - guess that's only to be expected. Many Swedes were lost, and I'm still scared I'll return home to find someone gone, but as it is now it seems as if everyone I know is alright. I hope you've been as fortunate.

So that's the reason for my longer-than-usual break - sorry. :)

**elsiey:** I'm so glad you're back - for a while there I thought you were gone for good! :) Anyhow, about your question: I am kind of poking at a longer Sailor Moon fic, pretty classic pairing of Haruka and Michiru… I just have to see if I can pull it off. It's only an idea so far, no real plot. But I'm working on it.

**NefCanuck:** I love mysteries… (Bet you couldn't guess that already…:P)

**Inu-yasha'smistress:** I'm on holiday in Australia right now, and just wrote that to say I was having a good time. :)

**AnimeAngelz:** Glad you like it.. sorry for the break, I didn't feel like updating for a while. And sorry again, because I won't update very regularly for a time... look at it as being slow but sure.

**myinuyasha04:** You are not way off, you are rather on. Go you. ;)

**CraziAznGurl:** What's a pixie stick?

**glenlightarrow:** Thank you very much! Of course I'm going to continue, I love writing too much to just stop. :) I've just had lots to sort out lately, so I haven't felt like it for a while. But now I'm ready again! Uh, more or less. If I'm not quick enough, just have patience. (Please. ;D)


	18. About Coffee and Crack

About Coffee and Crack

Inu-yasha rolled off his bed, landed on the floor and swore, at length. This had become somewhat of a routine in the morning. However, since his bed had in this particular night consisted of the living room sofa, his actions caused him to bump into the table, whereupon a tottering pile of files decided to rearrange themselves by falling all over him. Inu-yasha swore again, for several minutes and with surprising inventiveness. He then heaved himself back onto the sofa and tried to recall the events of the past night, in order to find the reason as to why he was sleeping in a sofa and not in his nice bed with a nice cushioning of clothes and assorted stuff on his floor. (In his current state Inu-yasha had forgotten about the fact that the nice cushioning was not, in fact, there anymore – due to The Terrible Event, also known as When Kagome Cleaned His Room.)

OK. Last night he'd woken up to find a young man with black clothes and a burglar's toolbelt standing in their living room, having just broken in through the window. He had then proved not to be a burglar (well, at least not on a job), but Kagome's little brother. He had then fainted. After being woken up again, he had begged a private session with Kagome to tell her something important, which he had previously forgotten due to not having slept for close to a week.

_All part of normal night so far, in my warped excuse for a life_, thought Inu-yasha glumly. _Lessee… what happened then? Oh yeah, Sota fell asleep in the window._

He had insisted on going home to his own TUTU apartment, and was leaning out of the window to calculate the best route down when he suddenly collapsed over the windowsill. They had rushed to his aid only to find him snoring. After screaming at him for several minutes, Kagome had firmly decided to let him have her bed and NO, SOTA, I WON'T HEAR ANYTHING ELSE GODDAMNIT oh you're asleep again anyway aren't you.

And then Inu-yasha had said that of course Kagome couldn't do that. Sota would take his bed instead, and he would find himself somewhere else to sleep.

Inu-yasha groaned. Why, oh why had his mother brought him up to be a gentleman?

"Why Inu-yasha! You're awake!" said Kagome, coming into the living room with a cup of coffee in one hand. Inu-yasha turned a muzzy stare on her and she bit her lip, smiling. "Oh dear. I think I want to take back that statement."

"Whatimezit," said Inu-yasha. Kagome cocked her head to one side.

"I didn't quite catch that, sorry."

Inu-yasha concentrated. "What… time… is it?"

"Ooh, well done. And without any profanities, too." Kagome smirked, then bent forward and peered at Inu-yasha's own wrist watch. "Looks like eight fifteen."

"Oh man, I didn't even know this time of the day existed," said Inu-yasha, rubbing his eyes with his fists and sitting up a bit straighter. "Can't believe I woke up so early. Must be something in this room."

"I'm sorry." Kagome looked guilty. "I shouldn't have let Sota take your bed. Would you like to sleep in my bed tonight?"

Inu-yasha choked.

"What?!"

"Sota isn't going to wake up within the next twenty-four hours, I'm afraid," said Kagome apologetically. "So if you want, we can switch tonight. I can take the sofa here and you can sleep in a proper bed. Because you're not going to get Sota out of your own for quite a while. Sorry."

"No, no, it's OK." Inu-yasha cursed his way of interpreting things. "Thanks, though. OK, I think I'll go and have breakfast. It's kind of good that I woke up early actually, 'cos we're going to that warehouse and it's in the other end of town. And with this lousy bike I hired it's going to take ages." He sighed theatrically; Kagome grinned. "Do we have anything in the cupboards?"

"We have coffee," offered Kagome, brandishing her own cup. Inu-yasha shook his head.

"You don't think you're a bit of a caffeine addict?"

"Who, me?"

"You can get help for that, you know."

"I feel you're getting a bit too personal here."

"Maybe we should ration your coffee drinking per week, how about that?"

"Why are you scared of Jinenji's mum?"

"That was _pathetic_ attempt at changing the subject."

"......"

"And no, I won't tell you."

* * *

"OK, so this is it." They were parked in front of a large warehouse with black, forbidding windows. Kagome shivered involuntarily and Inu-yasha couldn't help agreeing with her. "Yeah, it looks creepy. It's probably because it's owned by Jakotsu." They dismounted and Inu-yasha wrote his usual "INU-YASHA'S BIKE" note, although this time he added, "YEAH, SO IT'S HIRED. YOU STILL DON'T TOUCH IT."

"Will that work here?"

"Well, it's not my district, but hopefully they get the message anyway. Shall we go in?"

"Got a search warrant?"

"A _what_?"

"Never mind."

Kagome deftly picked the lock on the doors and they moved in, walking carefully in case they disturbed anything. After a few minutes of blind fumbling, Inu-yasha managed to find the light switch and made the room bathe in sudden, sharp light. When their eyes had readjusted to the strong lamps, they could see several large crates stacked up against one wall.

"Is that what I think it is?" said Kagome quietly.

"I think so, unless you're hoping they're filled with finest quality coffee."

"Oh, shut up, you."

"Got the camera?"

They approached the crates, Kagome first taking photos from a couple of different angles. One at the top was open, and Inu-yasha leapt up to it to check. As he rummaged through the crate, a large smile began to spread over his face. Finally he leapt down again, with three plastic bags in each hand and one between his teeth.

"This is great," he said, spitting the bag into Kagome's hands and letting the other six follow it. "We've got everything here. There's an inventory in the top crate there, how much dope they have, how much everything cost them, where it's going... Goddamnit, it's even marked! Five kilos of crack to Sleazer at Crookshanks Alley, marijuana for Weird Al, a bit of Shikon dust for Bankotsu – that's an eye-opener, I didn't know he deals..."

"Shikon dust?" asked Kagome, looking up from the camera.

"Drugs for demons only," Inu-yasha replied, holding up a small bag with powder that shimmered prettily. "It's madly strong. Any human who tried this would go bye-bye before they had time to say OD. Or scream, as the case may be. There's crates and crates of the stuff – that's probably why they decided to call it the Shikon deal..." He delicately scooped up some powder with one claw and squinted at it with one eye closed. "And it's real good stuff, too."

"You seem to be an expert."

"None of that disapproving voice from a girl who gets withdrawal symptoms when the espresso machine breaks down, thank you very much!"

"Will you quit it? Ah..." Kagome looked up, dropping the bags onto the floor and gazing up towards the ceiling. "Wait a minute..." She put the camera down, too, and looked around, spotted a ladder and started to climb up it to the bars steadying the roof. As easily as if she was just ambling down the street, she started walking across the room, balancing on the roof beams.

"Hey, careful..."

"These bars are three inches wide, stop being a sissy."

"Who are you calling a sissy?"

"Take a look around you and then have a guess. Hey..." Kagome dropped to her knees; Inu-yasha started forward and only stopped himself from crying out in alarm at the last second, when he realized she had only crouched down to look at something she had found. She moved to and fro on the bar, bent low and apparently very interested in something only she could see.

"Are you done soon?" called Inu-yasha. "I'm getting a crick in the neck from watching you."

"Then don't, idiot. Toss me the camera."

"Do you know how much it cost?"

"Just toss it here, and then go and take a closer look in that corner over there... There's a dark stain." Grumbling to himself, Inu-yasha did as she asked and threw the camera towards her – she caught it with the tip of her fingers and grinned – and then went to investigate the oh-so-thrilling dark stain. As he approached the corner however, he found that Kagome had been right... there _was_ something important about this corner...

"Any scorch marks?" asked Kagome right behind his shoulder, making him jump.

"Don't sneak up like that!"

"Sorry. Any scorch marks?"

"Yeah..." Inu-yasha ran his hands over the wall, carefully feeling every bump and groove. "And something's been at this wall, there are claw marks, but it's not deep. It's rather as if the clawed person in question was aiming at something else, and only happened to scratch at the wall by mistake. And there is blood here..." He took a deep breath, filling his nose with the scent. "It's old now, but blood scents linger for long. It's demon, several different kinds. I can distinguish at least four types of ogre – those stay for _ages_ – and there is snake... frog... mantis... I can't feel them all but there's been a huge amount of demons here."

"I found the same up there." Kagome pointed to the roof beam she had been looking at. "And this seems to clinch it, doesn't it? This place was used to make Naraku's new body, the "poison imp" body." For some reason she looked almost sad as she said this, but in the next moment she beamed. "Which means we'll be done soon! That's so cool!" She held her hand up for a high five and he gave it to her happily.

"Alright," he then said, "let's grab these bags as evidence, take a couple of last pictures and scram. And then it's celebration time! We've still got to bring Kagura in, but we know where to find Naraku and we have Goshinki as a witness, too. Oh, we so rock. Wait..." he sniffed and frowned. "Have you started wearing Soul Skimmer?"

"Nope," said Kagome easily. "I wear Eau de Kagome."

"Very cute."

"Alright, I'm done. Let's go, then..."

"Do you smell burning?"

"You smell all kinds of things today, Inu-yasha... no wait, I feel it too." She paused for a second, then looked at him in alarm. "I think it's the bike!" Sure enough, they rushed out only to find the bike burning like a torch. A lone piece of paper floated in the air. Inu-yasha snatched just as it was about to fly into the flames, read it and groaned. He then handed it to Kagome.

"_Dear Inu-yasha, _(read the letter)

_A bottle with spirits, a piece of cloth and matches can do so much! Your bike burns very nicely – full tank, I presume? Well... at least I never touched it!_

_Ahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!_

_Best regards, Kageromaru._

_Ahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!_

_Oh yes, and Juromaru sends his love as well."_

"????" said Kagome.

"You think some of the people I've introduced you to so far have been a bit twisted? Slightly crazy?" asked Inu-yasha, and when she nodded he went on, "Well, Kag'n'Juro makes even Jakotsu seem perfectly sane by comparison, because he's so off his rocker he's a satellite all on his own."

"Kagenjuro? But the letter talked about two guys..."

"No, it's just the one guy, but he's schizo. His name is Kag _'n'_ Juro, short for Kageromaru and Juromaru. Kageromaru, the one who wrote the most part of the letter, is the sanest personality – and he's a genocidal, violent, psychopathic arsonist with the weirdest sense of humour ever encountered in human or demon. Juromaru is so far gone he can hardly be called a personality anymore. I mean, what can you do with a guy who _writes_ insane laughter?"

"Nasty."

"If I'd known this was his area I'd never have written that note." Inu-yasha bashed himself over the head with one of the helmets (which had been untouched by the fire), winced and then glared at the helmet as if it all was its fault. "God, how stupid. Telling Kag'n'Juro that "You don't touch it" is like _inviting_ him to toss a bottle bomb onto it. That's one hell of a bill I'm going to owe the bike rental store..."

"So what do we do in the meantime?" Kagome was loading the bags of dope into her bag, unpacking the camera to hang it over one shoulder. "We'll have to walk home, right?"

"Exercise is important," grinned Inu-yasha, and Kagome groaned. They locked the doors of the warehouse again and set off, discussing where to have lunch. When they had gone a few hundred metres, a long, thin shape detached itself from the shadows and silently followed. And in another part of town, in a shady room, a figure snapped its fingers at a similar long creature, making it look up from its tangle and rise into the air.

"Show me what your sister sees," said the figure, caressing the creature's flat, expressionless face. It shook itself briefly, then blew out a cloud of smoke, setting it hovering gently in front of the person in the shadows. Slowly a picture formed inside the mist, of two people walking down a street, one carrying a camera and the other with one motorbike helmet in each hand.

"And what does she hear?" A hand stretched out languidly to scratch the demon between the wide, dark eyes. "Tell me what she hears." The demon shook itself again, then opened its mouth and spoke, first in a male voice and then in a higher, female voice.

"_All I'm saying is, I can't help noticing our coffee consumption has increased remarkably since you came to live with us..."_

"_Maybe we should go and visit Jinenji's mum later, how about that? Would you like that, hm?"_

"Oh, honestly." The hand dropped abruptly, signaling exasperation. "Well, have they managed to get anything done today or are they just spending their time bickering? Let your sister possess you. Let her tell me what she knows." The creature shook itself a third time and then rose higher, eyes unfocused, swaying slightly from side to side.

"Riko. This is you now, I presume?" The creature nodded. "Well, have they achieved what they came there to do?" A nod. "They have all the information?" Again, a nod. "And they noted _both_ the Shikon storage and the marks from the poison imp spell?" The demon nodded once more. "Very well, Riko. Leave your sister and go back to watching them for me." The demon shook more violently this time, then its eyes focused again and it surged closer to its owner, who patted it absentmindedly.

"Well done, Mido. Things are certainly moving along now, aren't they? Very sharp, the dear agents. Very sharp indeed."

* * *

Tally Ho! Here's Fanny, back home again in a country where the outside temperature is approximately the same as in a normal fridge, after spending a month in sunny Australia. Fair exchange? I think not!

But I whine too much. Sorry. Just sort of, well, hit me over the head with a cyberspace fist if I'm too annoying. (I've probably told you this before. If that's annoying as well, hit me twice.)

Oh, and I just found out how to add a line thingie in my text - so cool. Admire it!

**elsiey:** Glad to hear you're still out there :) - and I don't think you're late with reviews. How dare you think such a thing. ;)

I'm really sorry to hear about Penang… it's sad that so much was destroyed.

**glenlightarrow:** Inu-yasha jumping on the bed was modeled largely on me and my sister. But although she's the younger one, in our house _I'd_ rather be the one jumping on _her_ bed. (She's NOT a morning person. Oh, and don't tell her I said that.)

**luvinukagome:** You're right, I don't live in the U.S. I'm Swedish. And I've never set foot in America. :)

The reason I chose to set my fic in the U.S. though was that many people also outside USA have at least a basic knowledge of where main towns (like New York, Washington D.C., Boston etc.) are situated – more than if I'd used Australia (where I've lived), at least. (That's what I think anyway. I could be completely wrong. :P) And as for Sweden – it's a country of nine million inhabitants, most people hardly know we exist and we don't even speak English as a first language anyway, so a story told in English but set in Sweden would just be silly.

…Oh, sorry. You asked me a question and I treat you to An Author's Woes. (Oops..) Anyway, glad to hear you like the story!

And curious is good, by the way. Keep it up.

**Harei sky:** Yo! Sorry I didn't write for a long time, just didn't feel like it you know… and Internet was hard to come by as it was… anyway. Now I'm back. :)

**Do a DAMN GOOGLE SEARCH:** That is a _really_ weird name. :) I like it.

**Crazy Tengu & Ashley:** Of course I'll update soon!

…then again, "soon" is a relative word. (Heh heh.)


	19. The last piece of the puzzle?

The last piece of the puzzle?

"So lessee..." Kagome looked up from her notebook and swept the fringe out of her eyes. Very cute, thought Inu-yasha, and then wondered why on earth he did. "We have a connection between Kagura and Naraku – bit weak, but we've got two witnesses to back it up: Kagura when we find her and Goshinki. (Don't roll your eyes like that, Inu-yasha.) We have the _theory_ behind the entire deal, how it happened and who was involved, but we still lack a bit in the proof department. We _may_ be able to get evidence if we could get some of the airport workers to testify, if we could get a few different priestesses and demons together and ask the workers to point out which power they recognize... but it's still a bit thin. Possibly we'll get it to hold in a court anyway, but it would be nice to get something just a bit more substantial... Inu-yasha, what are you looking at?"

"Huh?" Inu-yasha looked away from the window and back at her. "Sorry, there's just this guy who's been standing there for a while now. It looks like he's staring at you. I don't know, but you may have an unknown admirer there." Kagome grinned and twisted in her seat to look out of the window, too.

"Wouldn't that be interesting... oh. Um, actually - that guy isn't unknown. Wait here for a minute, OK?" She jumped up and hurried out of the restaurant, before Inu-yasha had time to ask what she meant. Through the window he saw her run up to the guy and start talking, bent towards him and looking very secretive. He answered her, at length, and she seemed to listen intently. Her expression went from troubled to excited and then back to worried again. After a while she held up her hand, took a pen from her pocket and scribbled something on a piece of paper which she then handed to the guy. They talked for a while longer, and finally seemed to reach a conclusion. Lighting up in a smile, Kagome gave the guy a quick hug and was just about to walk back to the restaurant when he caught her hand and said something, looking bashful and blushing. Kagome smiled again – _A strained smile?_ wondered Inu-yasha, or rather hoped – and pulled her hand free, saying something and gesturing awkwardly. The guy looked a bit disappointed, but waved and walked off, and Kagome returned to the restaurant.

"Who was it?" asked Inu-yasha as she came in again, hoping that he sounded suitably nonchalant. He wasn't really sure why he was so interested, but he felt that he had to know who the guy had been.

"Old work mate," said Kagome, fidgeting with her notebook. "His name is... it's Hojo."

"Hojo?" Inu-yasha felt a start of alarm, but hid it. "I've heard the name before somewhere... I think Sota mentioned him once. Isn't he your boyfriend?"

"It's been officially over for six months."

"OK," said Inu-yasha casually, trying not to show how important the answer was to him. So they had been a couple… And "officially" over? Did that mean he was still interested, or that she was? From the looks of things, it was probably the former, but still... "Well, that's sucky," he said, watching to see how she reacted. "He looks like a nice guy, though."

"He is. That's the problem."

Ouch. Now there was a comment that was hard to read into.

Kagome looked out of the window, then glanced back at him and grinned. "Hey, you feel like visiting The Three-eyed Bull tonight? We really have to celebrate that we're almost at the conclusion of this. Let's go and just have a good time, the two of us. OK?"

"Sounds great," Inu-yasha agreed, happily, and decided to drop the thoughts about Hojo for the time being. An evening with Kagome, without all the other guys trying to make a move and just being annoying... it would really make a nice change.

Through the eyes of a long, thin demon, a person watched them. And as they talked and laughed together, making plans for the final stages of their investigation and for their night out, an idea was born.

……………………………

Sesshoumaru wasn't home when they arrived back at the apartment, but he had left a note saying that he wouldn't be home until much later. On the table was also an envelope addressed to the two agents in charge of the investigation about Naraku. Inu-yasha opened it quickly, expecting maybe some piece of information or tip. Instead he found a letter, written in a beautiful, sloping hand.

A few minutes later, Kagome was surprised to hear a roar of rage.

"What's the matter?" she asked in alarm, running into the living room. Instead of replying, Inu-yasha just thrust the letter towards her, glowering. She accepted it curiously and read it through.

"_Dear agents Higurashi and Inu-yasha,_

_Here follows a list of my closest employees. I present this to you with my compliments, hoping that it will prove to be useful in hunting down the villainous fiend in charge of this immoral "Shikon Deal". Because that was supposed to be me, wasn't it?_

_Best regards, Naraku._

_1) Kagura_

_2) Goshinki_

_3) Kanna_

_4) Kag'n'Juro_

_P.S. You may send the insurance bill for the motorbike to my account, of course."_

"Oh, the smug bastard," growled Kagome as she finished the letter. "So _he_ sent Kag'n'Juro? He's got so much self confidence it makes me want to throw up. That was his warning to us, I guess... _"mess with me and you mess with my completely insane employees"_..."

"That's the second bike he's ruined for me," said Inu-yasha tightly, clenching his fists. Damn it, he could take assassination attempts any day, but Naraku really knew how to get to him, didn't he. "Well, let's see how smug he is when we've got him behind bars. We are so close to getting him now!"

"Don't worry. Soon we'll have him in, and then he won't ever be able to do any bike harm again." Kagome patted his shoulder soothingly, although she looked like she was trying not to grin. Damn her, too. "In the meantime, can you go and pick up some dinner for us? Pasta would be nice today, I think. And I'll call on some contacts of my own while you're gone, see if anyone knows anything. They've been a last resort until now... it's probably time to remind some of them that I exist. Oh, and I've got to check on Sota too, although it seems unlikely he's going to wake up before tomorrow..."

"Yeah, yeah, OK. I'll go get the grub." Inu-yasha walked dispiritedly to the door. "See you in half an hour... or more, now that I'll have to walk... curse Naraku to each of the seven hells in turn..."

He was on his way (walking slowly and feeling very sorry for himself) when the cell phone suddenly rang. Thinking that it was Kagome who called to remind him of something, he picked it up and answered morosely.

"A poor lonesome cowboy without even his faithful bike answering, how may I help you?"

"Do you want to have proof of who was involved in the Shikon deal?" asked a voice, sounding distorted and hoarse. Inu-yasha snapped to attention immediately, recognizing a snout when he heard one.

"Wouldn't mind, really," he said carefully. Never sound too eager, then they tell you nothing.

"Meet me. Alone. I can show you something... but I'll want something in return, if you catch my drift."

"How much?"

"Say... a hundred?"

"A hundred?" Inu-yasha grinned. _Oh dear, what a novice. He could just as well give it away for free._ "Don't know if I can cough up that much, mate. Can you settle for fifty?"

"Eighty."

"Sixty, maybe?"

"Eighty or nothing. Got it, copper?"

"I'm not a copper, thank you. But OK, eighty it is. I'll get it somehow. But what you have better be good."

"Sure is, _copper_." This time Inu-yasha could really hear the petty malice hidden in the words. Dear, dear. A rebel, who didn't like the law. And who sold his information for less than Inu-yasha had paid for hiring that bike (may it rest in peace). He would be a terrible criminal. "Tonight, ten o'clock on the Red Bridge, the end closest to the Spider Club."

"Ten o'clock... alright." Inu-yasha smirked to himself, and couldn't resist baiting the little novice a little. "Nice and dark by then, eh?"

"Don't get too cocky, copper, I'm warning you." This time Inu-yasha had to bite down on his lip hard to stop from laughing.

"Sorry," he said humbly, trying to imagine what kind of person this snitch would be. The image that presented itself to his mind made him grin, broadly. A young boy, probably, one who spray-painted graffiti and hung out with half-assed gangs, thinking he was a gangster. How cute. "Ten o'clock. Red bridge. Eighty bucks. Got it."

"Oh yeah, and come alone. I mean completely alone. Don't even bring your partner, got it?"

_Shit, you're a suspicious one._ "Got it. See you there!"

"Don't sound so bloody chipper, copper." And with that witty parting remark, the prospective snitch rang off, and Inu-yasha finally allowed himself to laugh out loud. When he had calmed down a little he went on his way, and then suddenly he stopped short. Tonight. That meant he'd have to cancel his and Kagome's celebration.

_Damn, that sucks. But this is probably a one-time chance... she'll understand that. Man, this might finally be what solves the case!_

Nevertheless, despite his happiness over finally having the end of the case in reach, he felt guilty. And disappointed – it would have been nice to spend some time with Kagome. But what the hell, they'd have plenty of time for that in the days to come.

Inu-yasha had no idea of how completely wrong he was.

…………………………………

**glenlightarrow:**Thankee:)

**Teyka darling: **We miss you already. Hell, we started missing you as soon as we stepped on the plane! But Internet is a marvelous invention, and you'll have to come to Europe sometime soon. (If you don't I'll step on you.)

**Bloody Poetry: **Glad you noticed the name thing....:)

**Crazy Tengu:** I do my best.;)

**NefCanuck:** What was her purpose indeed? (You won't have to eat your hat, by the way. Lucky you.)

**elsiey:** Mido and Riko has something to do with Midoriko, yes. Sort of.

And good luck with the IY-fic(s?) you'll write!

**mouko-star:** Uh... thanks? :)

**Inu-yasha'smistress:** Good. Things are supposed to be confusing. (Heh heh heh, I'm the only one who knows what'll happen....)


	20. Family affairs

**Family Affairs**

Inu-yasha stood in front of Sesshoumaru's big mirror, trying on his brother's long trenchcoat. "How's it look?" he asked Kagome, who was leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed, grinning. "Will I manage to convey the "cool and mysterious secret agent"- image?"

"You look fantastic." Kagome laughed and shook her head in disbelief. "I can't believe you're doing this. Why get dressed up just to meet a snitch?"

"My trouble is that I'm too nice..." Inu-yasha sighed, wearing the expression of a long-suffering martyr. "I just couldn't stand ruining all his expectations, poor guy. Imagine how disappointed he'd be." He took the coat off again and slung it over one shoulder. "So what are you doing tonight? I'm really sorry I had to cancel..."

"Nah, it's OK," said Kagome lightly. "I understand, of course. I don't know what I'm going to do, maybe join Koga and the guys for something – he called while you were out..."

"Did he?" Inu-yasha almost bit his own tongue. Damn the wolf! "Well, hope you have a nice time." _Did I just sound unbelievably jealous? In that case, why did I?_

Inu-yasha was a good guy, but quickness to accept emotions wasn't one of his best qualities.

"Yeah... a lot better than sitting home alone. No, it's OK!" she said quickly as he was about to apologize again. "It's just that since Sesshoumaru won't be home either, my only company here tonight would be Sota, who's currently on a looong visit to Mr Sandman. It's funny though – I used to live alone for many years, and had no problem with it. Guess you just get used to company. It's a drug. Like coffee." She winked at him, easing his feelings of guilt a little.

"Well," he said, "it's half past nine now so I think I'd better get _walking_." Kagome giggled at the emphasis on the last word. "See you later tonight, hopefully I'll have something new by then... if this snitch isn't a complete incompetent as well as an embarrassment to the criminal world. Nothing from your contacts, by the way?"

"No, nothing. They don't move in those circles," grinned Kagome.

"You know, the intonation you gave "those circles" didn't exactly flatter the fact that my friends do."

"It's all in your head."

"Shut up."

.......................... 

Inu-yasha stood on the Red Bridge, freezing his ass off. It was a quarter past ten and he was beginning to feel more than a little pissed off. Not only was this guy possibly just a waste of time – he didn't keep appointments, either. Well, Inu-yasha wouldn't give Bankotsu any good references of _him_, that much was for sure.

"Sorry. Did I make you wait?"

Inu-yasha looked up sharply as he heard the voice speak, and saw a figure dressed in a long, black coat of expensive design standing in front of him, with the hood pulled up to hide her face. _Her _face, for it was a woman. Well, it shouldn't really come as a surprise – there were all kinds of devices for changing your voice over the phone if you wanted. She was still masking her voice, talking low and with her face hidden in her collar, but something about it nudged him, some tiny spark of recognition. But it couldn't... it couldn't be _Kagome_, could it?

Could it?

Inu-yasha stamped his feet, trying to get some heat back into them. It was an unusually cold night, and he was much tempted to just yell something obscene at this person who'd made him stand for a quarter of an hour on a wind-whipped bridge, and then go home and make himself a large cup of hot chocolate. However, that wouldn't be very clever, so he discarded the idea (rather reluctantly).

"Yeah, you did," he said out loud, trying not to sound too annoyed. "But I'll look over it, as long as you have something good for me. You said you knew something about the Shikon deal. What have you got?"

"Well, I can for example tell you where the demoness known as Kagura currently resides. And I may be able to supply the final link between her and Naraku." The woman was walking towards him, hands in her pockets. When she was two metres off she stopped, raising one gloved hand to her hood and pulling on it, securing that her face was still hidden. "The question is, agent Inu-yasha – what are you willing to give me in return?"

Inu-yasha looked at her curiously. _Hang on_, he thought. _She is not right. She's not at all like she was on the phone... this is an act._

_Or the phone call was an act._

"Who are you?" he asked.

She was silent for a moment, face buried deep in her collar. Then she laughed softly.

"You are so clever," she said. "I knew it from the first moment I saw you."

She pulled the hood off her face. And Inu-yasha looked into the eyes of Kikyo Miko.

……………………………

For a long while Inu-yasha didn't say anything, while he tried to work out just what was happening. What was going on with miss Miko? Why was she there? Why had she called him, pretending to be a snout? Finally he decided that he had to say something.

"Um," said Inu-yasha.

"Not what you expected?" Miss Miko smiled frostily. "I am so sorry."

"No but... but... what the _hell_?!" Inu-yasha threw out his hands in an exasperated gesture, at the same time throwing manners to the winds. At the moment he was a little too pissed off to care. "I mean why did you have to meet me here? Why not just _call_? And have you been doing investigations of your own, in that case why didn't you tell us? Some cooperation would be nice! And why aren't you even on time? I think my ears are frozen! They're sensitive! I'm telling you, miss Miko, that if you didn't happen to be a client – "

"Oh, do stop with the 'miss Miko', Inu-yasha," said Kikyo Miko, smiling again but this time much more warmly. "It's getting to be such a bore. Why did I want to meet you here, you ask? Well, the first and most simple reason is that I suspect your phone is being bugged. There is someone inside the YSA who has been working with Naraku, helping him out and giving him information. I wanted to be able to tell you at least _some_ information that would not reach his ears eventually. And..." she walked closer to him until there was hardly an inch between them, "I also had my own highly _private_ reasons for calling you out like this."

She stared into his eyes, putting one hand against his cheek. Then she kissed him.

Inu-yasha's eyes widened in shock. _Whoa. That was unexpected..._ The woman he had found so fascinating, strange and unreachable, turned out to be not quite so unreachable after all. From the first time she had stepped into their office he had wondered about how it would be like to kiss those cold lips – um, now that he did, the experience wasn't an unpleasant one.

But was that what he wanted?

Inu-yasha broke the kiss, stepped back a pace. "Uh, I'm sorry," he said awkwardly. "But I can't return those, er, feelings."

Kikyo's eyes narrowed. "I see," she said. "So the little whore already has you enchanted, does she?"

"You know Yura?" asked Inu-yasha, feeling astonished.

"What? No, that's not who I meant." Kikyo frowned.

"Then you mean... Blossom?"

"Who?"

"Twinkles?"

"What? No, I – "

"Oh... that chick who came from South Dakota? But she was only here for three months or something, and had a horrible accent anyway..."

"What are you, retarded?" Kikyo Miko exclaimed in irritation. "I didn't mean it literally! I'm talking about the girl who has infiltrated your bureau, leaked information to Naraku, befuddled you, exploited you, fooled you, used you. You know who I mean, don't you? Yes you do, I can see you recognize what I say. Haven't you thought so yourself? I know you've been suspicious of her."

Inu-yasha's throat had suddenly gone very, very tight. "You're lying," he said, speaking automatically, his brain racing.

"No, agent Inu-yasha, I am not lying." Kikyo smiled, a pointed, cold smile. "She has fooled you all along. Did you think she came to your agency because she _liked_ you?"

"She was assigned to us..."

"Of course she was. By Naraku! She was planted there as one of his most faithful servants. Did you not suspect her? I'm sure you did. And I did, as well. I've been following her, watching her, since the first day she stepped into your office. I've seen her on her own time, returning to the Spider Club to give report. I've seen her at the airport, casting spells over the staff, spells to insure they remembered nothing of the large import of drugs that took place there. I've seen her talking and laughing with you, the false little bitch!" Kikyo broke off, staring angrily at Inu-yasha with eyes black as coal. Inu-yasha's breath caught in his throat. Could such hatred and jealousy be faked? Kikyo Miko had to be telling the truth! _But no, it can't be true, it can't..._

"It _is_ true," said Kikyo Miko quietly. "Kagome Higurashi, as she is currently known, is the right hand of Naraku, the Spider. She is nothing but a fraud. She is the one in charge of the Shikon Deal. She has been working alongside you, but she has laid traps in your way time and again without you noticing. She has led you along false trails. She tricked you, Inu-yasha. And she is so good, isn't she." Kikyo smiled again. "She really made you believe she liked you, hm?"

"You can't be telling the truth." Inu-yasha head was spinning. It was too much to take in! Something kept telling him it wasn't true, yet everything he'd thought, everything that had puzzled him, all the pieces fell into place when Kikyo Miko spoke.

"Why do you think she has information about stuff you've hardly heard of yourself? Why do you think she has contacts in the underworld? Why do you think she's always been one step ahead? _Think_, Inu-yasha, damn it! Don't be fooled by her charm."

"But..."

"Sheez, the way you make it sound I seem like some kind of criminal!"

Inu-yasha swirled around, coming face to face with Kagome, standing a few metres further away. Suddenly aware of how close he had been standing to Kikyo, he took a few steps away from her, towards Kagome, and opened his mouth. However, Kagome spoke before him, raising her voice slightly.

"The way I see it, criminality must run in the family then, right? _Right?_ Don't you agree with me, Kikyo... Higurashi?" Inu-yasha left his mouth open. Staring from the one girl to the other, he wasn't sure what shocked him the most – the truth about Kikyo's surname, the suddenly enraged, twisted expression on her face or the bow and arrows that had just as suddenly appeared in her hands.

Kagome smiled.

"Hi, sis."

…………………………

Wow, thank you all for your reviews! I can't believe I've made it to 20 chapters – and there will be more!

**elsiey:** Indeed, the conclusion is near. Hopefully everything will be made clear. (That rhyme was not intentional, I promise.)

**NefCanuck:** …trap… in a way, yeah. :)

**Inu-yasha'smistress:** Yeah, I know… I'm kind of sad it's drawing to its end too. :P But on the other hand, once I've finished this I'll be able to turn my thoughts to other projects I've been thinking about. (Yeah!)

**jester:** Thank you very much… that's really great praise.

**luvinukagome:** Thanks for all the kind words… although Sweden is not that cool when you actually live here… but there are some things about Sweden I would never switch for anything else. Spring, for example. Spring is a great season here.

Sorry for the cliffhanger. (Although if you're going to keep reading, just uh… prepare yourself for one or two more.)

And about the time – we're six hours before your time, so when it's 10:54 in the morning in New York, it's 16:54 over here.

**angel-from-hell321:** Wouldn't want you to go crazy, so I guess I'll have to hurry up over here… Though I'm happy you find it so twisting, because that's what I was aiming for. :)

**glenlightarrow & Crazy Tengu: **I update as soon as I find a spare hour, rest assured. (The problem is that lately, spare hours have been getting harder to find…)


	21. We of the underworld

We of the underworld

"_We're one of a kind, you and I. Creatures of the cruel underworld, strong, resourceful, ruthless and clever... we are alike in those aspects. Because that's what we need to survive. And that is why I'm putting you this offer." _

"_I feel honoured to be considered an equal, Naraku." She raised her eyebrows, making it a challenge._

"_Oh but of course. You showed the most promise of any of my employees. That's why I singled you out."_

"_Only because of that?"_

_He chuckled. "No, you are right. There were some other, rather personal, reasons as well. But you knew that from the start, didn't you?"_

"_I had a hunch."_

"_So aloof!" Naraku laughed, putting two fingers to his forehead in a dramatic gesture. Always the dramatic, Naraku. "Magnificent. Well – about my offer. Would you be willing to share the ownership with me?"_

"_I dare say I would."_

"_Well then, this is to our partnership." He raised his glass to her. "And I don't mind telling you that I'm hoping to make it "partnership" in every sense of the word."_

_She raised her glass, smiling._

"_To our partnership."_

_-_

"I don't expect we'll ever understand each other," said Kikyo Higurashi, stepping carefully to the side so as to have Kagome in better view. Inu-yasha started forward, but was stopped by two snake-like creatures, which wrapped themselves around his waist and legs, forcing him to stay where he was.

"Hey, what are you – "

"I don't suppose we will, actually," Kagome responded, long knives ready in her hands.

"I didn't think so, either." Kikyo turned her head and smiled at Inu-yasha. "Don't worry, dear agent. They are only holding you fast for your own good. Kagome Higurashi is a dangerous criminal, and I wouldn't want you to get in the way. You could very well get hurt." And her words recalled to Inu-yasha an enhanced knife, a Saimyoshi gang member almost killed. But he also remembered an attack at the Three-eyed Bull, arrows glowing with power. Was Kikyo the one who had attacked Kagome that night? He didn't understand at all... And he smelled something strange...

"It's admirable how you can say that with a straight face, Kikyo." Kagome took a slow step forward.

"How the puppy barks. Haven't you hid from me all this time? That scared, were you?" Kikyo sneered. "I'm disappointed, sister. I would have expected at least a little fight! Are you that afraid of justice, Kagome?"

Inu-yasha sniffed. There, on his coat, was the scent of Soul Skimmer.

"Don't talk to me about justice," said Kagome quietly.

"Ah, _now_ we're warming up." Kikyo put an arrow to the bow.

"Wha – wait!" shouted Inu-yasha, but his voice was lost in the sudden onslaught of power. The creatures pulled him backwards, away from the sudden, bright light, but he could just make out (if he squinted) the shape of one arrow and one knife as they sped towards each other, met in mid-air and clashed, sending shock waves of priestess power washing over them all. Inu-yasha screwed his eyes shut instinctively, shielding himself as best as he could with his arms. When he opened his eyes again, a few moments later, Kagome and Kikyo were locked in close combat, the former wielding one knife in each hand and the other parrying with a long staff. Both women's weapons were glowing, strengthened by their wielders' power.

Inu-yasha swore, trying to free himself from the two demons' grasp. But they were rendering him quite helpless, drawing on his own power to hold him down, stealing his strength. _Did Kikyo really do this to help me?_ he thought. _Or was it so that I wouldn't help Kagome? Which one of these can I really trust? None of them have told me the whole truth..._ Kikyo was fighting like an expert, ducking and hitting, matching Kagome for speed and skill. And Kagome was a very good fighter. Kikyo was no ordinary lawyer, that much was for sure.

_Aargh, I fucking hate sisters!_ thought Inu-yasha, struggling against Kikyo's demons. Those demons that were commonly known as soul skimmers.

-

"Haven't you run for long enough now, little sister?" Kikyo sidestepped and bent backwards to avoid a slash of Kagome's knife, then thrust forward. Kagome had slashed her bowstring as the first thing she did, and she had unbent her bow to use it as a pole, aiming to break bones. So far Kagome had avoided a direct hit, but the staff had grazed her left arm and her hand was numb, hardly fit for fighting. On the other hand, Kikyo was sporting several cuts, one across her cheek and two or three on her arms. Kagome strained herself and pushed Kikyo away, pausing in her attack to look at her older sister. 

"I had my reasons."

"Drop the act, sweetheart. I think the tables are turned now. I think you're about to feel what it feels like to have everything taken from you. And I think your precious Inu-yasha has been catching on to you for a long time. Of course, I took the privilege of alerting him to the truth."

"Which truth, I wonder?"

At that precise moment, with the two sisters standing two or three feet apart, Inu-yasha finally managed to free a hand. And slammed his fist down with all his strength, right between one of the soul skimmer's eyes. As it threw its head back, rearing in pain with its mouth open in a soundless scream, Kikyo's eyes flickered towards it for the merest of moments. As if they had rehearsed it, Kagome took advantage of her shift in attention to drop down in a crouch. She swung her leg around in a powerful kick that completely swept Kikyo off her feet. As the older woman landed, hard on her back, Kagome was on top of her in the space of a heartbeat, her knee against Kikyo's ribcage, the tip of her knife pressed lightly to her sister's throat.

With Kikyo's fall her control over the demons wavered, and Inu-yasha could with a few well-placed punches get them out of his way. He gave them an extra kick each for good measure, and ran towards Kagome.

-

..._"But why so frosty, my dear?" Naraku raised his eyebrows, looking at her over the rim of his glass. She smiled, ironically, but her heart was beating thump, thump, thump, hammering hard inside her chest._

_"I'm not so sure that I can trust you." But she wanted to trust him, she wanted so much to be able to put her head against his shoulder and think of nothing but how much she loved him. _

_Naraku put his glass down and reached out for her hand. He turned the palm up and kissed it, then looked up at her again. It really wasn't fair, she thought, it really wasn't fair at all. When nothing could faze him, when nothing could make that calm expression disappear in alarm - why could he then undo her with the merest glance? Did he know that he made her completely helpless?_

_"Dear..." Naraku spoke softly, smiling at her. "Do not think that because Naraku is restrained he is cold. I do love you. We'll always be here for each other. And I'll always protect you... Kikyo."_

-

"Your problem has always been that you celebrate your victory too early, and that you underestimate your opponent," said Kagome, as a word of friendly advice.

"Your problem has always been that you can't resist giving a lecture," Kikyo spat back at her. She turned her head slightly (_very_ slightly – having a knife-point against important arteries does wonders for your ability to move carefully), and sneered as she saw Inu-yasha free himself of her soul skimmers and start towards them. "Oh look, it's your Prince Charming, hurrying to save you."

Kagome put her head to one side, regarding her sister seriously. "Why did you do it?"

"You know why I did it. Although you will never, of course, understand. You who have everything, don't you. The depth of that betrayal, the hurt, the pain... that is something you will never fathom." Kikyo glared up at her, and bared her teeth in a mirthless smile. "Oh, and just because I'm a rotten-to-the-core bitch and refuse to go down alone, here's a name for you: Onigumo. Look into it. And now – feel free to clap me in irons."

-

"Hey, Inu-yasha, do you have a pair of handcuffs on you? I seem to have mislaid mine." Kagome turned to Inu-yasha with a bright smile, but managed to keep the point of her knife securely in place. He approached slowly.

"I have, but I'm not certain who I should reserve them for. The lawyer with a false name who gave me job, or the CIA agent who never quite managed to make her story hold?" He spoke carefully, not wanting to startle either woman to any desperate action. Kagome's eyes clouded for a second, but then she smiled.

"Fair enough, I guess. You know what? I'll make it easy for you. By _ordering_ you to give them to me." She put a hand into her pocket and drew out a badge, flipping it open for Inu-yasha to see.

"Kagome Higurashi, Head of the Kikyo Higurashi division, Special Murder Investigations Department, the CIA."

……………………………

Heya! I wish I would be able to draw and could make a doujinshi or summat out of this chapter… I wanted it to have a lot of action, and it's hard to _write_ action, you know… hope I got the picture across anyway. And thanks all of you for your reviews. I am really very glad that most of you were surprised about the last chapter because that was, well, part of the point. (Heh heh.)

Well, I'm in a rush. Bye for now!


	22. Law and order and petty squabbles

Law and order and petty squabbles

"Calling the last witness, Kagome Higurashi, to the witness stand!"

Kagome walked calmly down the aisle and stood to take her vows. She was looking crisp and official in a well-fitting suit and with her hair in a bun, and looked in fact not much different from her sister, who was sitting in the defence, sullen and silent. Kagome did not so much as look her way, but after she had said the vows and was sitting down, her eyes flicked towards the back of the courtroom for a second, and the ones that were closest to her said that they saw her smile.

In the back of the courtroom, Inu-yasha pulled with irritation on the sleeves of his shirt, leaning towards his brother.

"OK that I have to dress up for the occasion, but couldn't you have lent me a shirt that wasn't four sizes too small? We wear almost the same size, when is this shirt from? When you were in high school?"

"Correct," said Sesshoumaru, and didn't bother to hide his smirk. "Good luck I had it around. Do you really think I'd trust you with one of my shirts?"

"You are asking for a beating."

"Shut up and listen instead."

"Kagome Higurashi," said the prosecuting lawyer (Inu-yasha quickly straightened up and paid attention). "Can you tell me what happened on the 4th of April, 1994?"

Kagome stared blankly at the lawyer. "You are talking about an event ten years ago."

"Yes?"

"…And I'm not a living almanac. But OK, let me think." Kagome held up a hand and started ticking off fingers. "1997 I graduated, 1995 I moved away from home... oh. You're talking about Midoriko's murder."

"Midoriko was murdered. By whom?"

"By my sister, Kikyo Higurashi."

There was a suitable gasp from the audience; Inu-yasha rolled his eyes.

"Who was Midoriko?"

"Midoriko was an old friend of both me and Kikyo," Kagome explained, in a calm, pleasant voice. "We'd gone to the same school for years. She was the same age as Kikyo, two years older than me. She and Kikyo were especially good friends those last two years. Of course, it wasn't until afterwards that I realized this was because Midoriko did heavy drugs and Kikyo supplied her." Kagome shrugged. "And then came the day when Midoriko was so heavily in debt that she threatened to tell the police if she didn't get more time to scrounge up money. And then Kikyo killed her. Using a skipping rope and two carrots, I believe."

There was another gasp from the audience; this time Kagome rolled her eyes as well.

"Right, miss Kagome, I wonder if you could – "

"Can I ask you a question?" said Kagome. The lawyer blinked. "Why are we talking about an event that happened ten years ago? I thought this trial was supposed to be about Kikyo's involvement in the Shikon deal, mainly? 'Cos we've got eighteen different investigations going on about this girl, so we decided to hold a couple of different trials. The one about murders – well, the first one about murders – is next week."

The lawyer looked unhappily at the judge.

"Permission to prove a point, your honour?" he asked timidly. The judge sighed.

"Alright, but make it quick."

"Er... yes." The lawyer turned towards the jury, throwing out an arm dramatically and pointing at Kikyo. "The murder you have just been told about, committed at the age of eighteen, was the first in a row of – "

"Um, actually..." The lawyer stopped, and turned slowly to face Kagome – who smiled, helpfully. "It wasn't her first murder. The first one was a boy she throttled in second grade, because he called her fat. Of course, they all said it was an accident, which it quite possibly was." (Kagome suddenly had a slight coughing fit, in which the word "not" could be discerned by those closest to the witness stand.) "Anyway, that would probably be her first murder. Oh, if you don't count two cats and a canary."

The lawyer stared at her, then signalled to the secretary not to take notes and stepped up to the witness stand, lowering his voice.

"Look, whose side are you really on?" he asked.

"Mine," smiled Kagome. "I want to get out of here as quickly as possible. So if you could hurry it up, I would be forever grateful. But of course, it's your choice."

"...You're a very cruel person."

"Thank you."

... 

"Your honour, we will proceed with the case about the Shikon deal." The lawyer spoke to the judge, but those who sat in the front rows thought it seemed like he shot the witness a very ugly look as he said this. "Kagome Higurashi, please tell us why you are here in this town."

"Very well." Kagome stood up, smiling at the lawyer. (He didn't smile back.) "I'm head of the CIA division that investigates the doings of Kikyo Higurashi – being her sister I was optimal for the job. We have been following her actions for several years, but always been one step behind. A few years ago Kikyo was head of the Spider Club, together with her lover, Naraku. After a certain betrayal by that same Naraku, Kikyo was sentenced to imprisonment for eighteen months. Since this wasn't to her fancy, she broke out of prison. We tracked her that far, and there we lost trace of her. But we found out, at least, that she had been very much in love with Naraku."

"Objection, your honour!" It was the lawyer who spoke, glaring at Kagome. "I would like to know what bearing Kikyo Higurashi's love relationships could possibly have on the case."

The judge frowned. "You can't say objection to a witness, for Christ's sake."

"And it has every bearing possible," said Kagome sweetly. "My sister is never someone who does something half-way. She had been betrayed by the man she loved, and she would be after revenge. We did not know when, but we knew that she would eventually come back for it. Then, some time back, we had information that Kikyo had headed back to this town. She had attacked Naraku and tried to kill him, but had been unsuccessful. As we felt sure she wouldn't wait to try again, I started at the Youkai Secret Agency, to be able to go where I wanted in the city, and to have the right to investigate. Also, we knew that Kikyo would be using the YSA."

"Your honour, she is telling us irrelevant facts, not what this Shikon deal has been about."

The judge looked down her nose at the lawyer, who was wearing a very uppity expression. "Be quiet, you silly little man," she said. "You're being embarrassing. Let her finish."

"You're playing favourites!"

"Kikyo wanted to make Naraku feel what she had done: betrayal, shame and of course, long-time imprisonment." Kagome didn't even bother to look at the lawyer this time. "She organized the Shikon deal, and set it up to make it look as if Naraku was the one involved. She let information about a woman being in charge of the deal leak out, and set every trail pointing the way to Naraku's employee Kagura. She planted the drugs – which she had brought from Japan, a country she was well acquainted with – in a warehouse that belongs to Naraku and contains evidence of having been used for his purposes earlier. To properly play the farce, she hired the YSA to investigate the matter, and was careful to lead them in the direction she wanted them to take."

"But miss Goody-two-shoes Kagome Higurashi wasn't so easily fooled, I presume?"

Kagome looked sternly at the lawyer. "Aren't you supposed to be on the prosecuting side?"

"Yeah, but I don't like you."

"Bite me."

"Back to the subject, please!" The judge rapped her knuckles on the table. Kagome smiled at her, making the lawyer scowl and mutter about sucking up.

"Sorry. Anyway, that's pretty much it. She was arrested at ten thirty precisely four days ago and is held in custody until this court declares if she's guilty or not."

"Alright," said the judge, turning towards Kikyo and her lawyers. "Does the defending party want to cross-examine the witness?"

"He already did it so well for me," said the head defensive lawyer lazily, gesturing towards the prosecuting lawyer, and then suddenly jumped up as if stung. Staring in terror at Kikyo, he added quickly, "But one or two questions I could probably manage..."

The court secretary's child, aged five and a half, later said that he'd seen the pretty lady at the defence table put a knife back into her pocket as the defending lawyer hurried forwards, and was patted on the head for having a very vivid imagination, but also told not to tell stories.

The defending lawyer cleared his throat, looking down at his papers. "Now, Kikyo Higurashi..."

"My name is Kagome. You're defending Kikyo."

"Ah. Yes, of course." The lawyer looked up at her with a sly smile. "But how do I know that this is true? You look very much alike, could almost be twins, in fact. How do I know that you're not really Kikyo, and that your sister is sitting there, innocently accused? Huh?" He nodded towards the jury, apparently pleased with himself. Kagome sighed.

"That must have been the worst defence in the history of court hearings. And you're welcome to waste our time with DNA-tests."

"Er, no, that's alright." The man looked through his papers, trying to find something else to ask – in order to avoid going back to miss Psycho, also known as Kikyo Higurashi. "Well, _Kagome _Higurashi then, would you say that your sister is an evil person?"

"No, I wouldn't."

Inu-yasha, who'd been nodding off, jerked awake again. Now that was an unexpected reply, considering that the sibling enmity between those two seemed to be gone far beyond the occasional hard word.

"Kikyo is not evil," said Kagome, looking at her sister who stared silently at a wall. "She just doesn't look at things that way. If she kills, it's because she feels it's suitable, not because she wants to hurt someone. ...Well OK, actually sometimes that can be a reason, too. But take people like the guard in the prison she escaped from – she didn't see him as a person, but as an obstacle. That's why she could kill him without remorse. That's the way she's always been."

"So then your opinion is that she should not be sent to jail?"

"What are you, stupid?" Kagome looked in astonishment at the lawyer, who blushed. "Of course she should, she's a murderous bitch."

"Er..."

"Defence, do you have a wrap-up speech?" the judge inserted quickly, longing – as Kagome – for the damn trial to just come to an end so she could collect her triplets from Day care.

"No, sorry."

"Prosecution, a speech?"

"Yes!" The prosecuting lawyer leapt forward eagerly, to his moment of glory. "As you can see, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, this woman has – "

"Save your breath, kiddo," said the leading member of the jury, a sixty-year old man who wanted to watch Beverly Hills and was afraid he'd miss it if the trial dragged on any longer. "We've already decided: unanimous vote of guilty."

The lawyer broke down and cried.

"Does this mean I can go?" said Kagome hopefully.

………………………………………………

Hello everyone and thank you for your very encouraging reviews! They make me very very happy. :)

I hope this chapter explained all the mysteries…

**NefCanuck:** I'm glad you liked the last two chapters! I worked for a long time on them… :)

**glenlightarrow:** Kagome is really a CIA agent. She will explain her (lying, sneaking) actions more in the next chapter.

**artemis:** Glad to hear you sounding so enthusiastic :) Thanks!

**Esmilla: **I know, I'm mad at the Review History too… :(

**Harei sky:** Whee – juicy, that's such a funny word:P Great to see you're still with me.

**luvinukagome: ** Yes ma'm, updating now as per your instructions. :) Nice little story there in the first review. That'll be the sequel to the YSA – the Case of the Stolen Jacket. (thumbs up)

…you could partner up with Sota and strike fear in the hearts of jacket owners everywhere. :)

**Crazy Tengu, Beloved Rose TrickyChicky454:** Don't worry, I've got the next chapter already written. Just have to finetune it a bit and then it'll be up quickly! (Great huh?) I just have to find the time to access ffnet, in between school, work and driving lessons…


	23. Goodbyes

Goodbyes

"Well, that was great trial," smiled Inu-yasha, waving for a waiter. He had promised to treat Kagome to a first class espresso once her part in Kikyo's trial was over, and had taken her to a very good (and very expensive) café as soon as he had pried the enraged prosecuting lawyer off her.

"Why, thank you." Kagome grinned. "An espresso, please." This was to the waiter, who nodded and turned to Inu-yasha.

"Make that two, thank you." Inu-yasha smiled at the waiter before turning back to regard Kagome quizzically. "By the way, was that Jakotsu I saw being dragged kicking and screaming into the court room for the next trial?"

"Was it?" said Kagome innocently.

"Charged with assaulting an officer of the law…"

"Really?"

"…possession of illegal weapons…"

"Point of interest – I checked, and hairpins are not allowed to be longer than 10 cm."

"…and finally, I quote, 'just being a downright little bitch'?"

There was a pause, in which Kagome had the decency to look at least slightly embarrassed.

"Well, you can't say you don't agree," she said finally, her tone defensive.

Inu-yasha shook his head and laughed. "Remind me never to get on your bad side. You sure seem to have a lot of power." This was said with a kind of surprised awe. "Just how many did you have following Kikyo?"

"Suffice it to say… a lot," grinned Kagome. "Among others, which you have probably already deduced as the frightfully clever guy you are, Sota. When he dropped in on us the first time, he had just been away investigating another one of Kikyo's little murders up in Nebraska. Since then he's been keeping tabs on her for me. Only when he has time off from his other job, mind you. He has a tendency to stretch himself." She said it with a fond sisterly exasperation, shaking her head. "Well, you finally got him out of your bed, at least."

(A young man who happened to pass by at that moment looked delighted to overhear this. Inu-yasha was later cornered on his way to the men's room and assured that if the space left was too empty, this guy would be more than happy to take Sota's place.)

"Yeah, and thank god," Inu-yasha countered. "I was starting to think it actually was his room – used to knock before I walked in. Waste of time, since he seemed to be in a coma. Thanks, I'll take that." The waiter had appeared again, with their coffee. Inu-yasha took the cups from him and waved him away with an assurance that he would pay later (he didn't want to reveal to Kagome just how much she was costing him today). As Kagome sipped her coffee – the look on her face being well worth the chunk this café visit would bite out of his budget – he regarded her closely, wondering if he would ever understand her completely.

"So," he said, "you really are from the CIA. For a long time there I had you down as an impostor…" This brought laughter from Kagome and a sheepish smile from Inu-yasha. "You know, I'm really sorry for thinking it was the other way around with you and your wayward sis, that you were the crook. But it was all very confusing."

"Apology accepted, on one condition." Kagome tried to look stern but failed, grinning at him. "Buy me coffee here again."

"Sure thing," smiled Inu-yasha. (Not entirely sincerely. His wallet was screaming obscenities at him.) "You want to know what really got my mind twisted up? Why you were always the one running from her. I mean, she said some things that didn't stick as well, but I thought that was because she didn't want to tell me she had an investigation on about you. Turns out I had it backwards, but since she was actually seeking contact with you…"

"She knew we didn't have anything on her yet," Kagome explained. "She was merely gloating. She thought it would be great fun to come and mock baby sister, knowing I wouldn't be able to do anything."

"That was the purpose of the quote she told me to relay to you as well, I guess."

"Uh-huh." Kagome nodded. "It was a warning and a threat to me, a hint to you – she was trying to make you believe I was a fake, remember – and it was also mockery, mentioning Midoriko. She knows I'll never get her for that murder, and she loves to make allusions to it – I mean, I knew Midoriko as well, you know. She christened her little helpers after Midoriko as well…"

"But how come you have so much on her now, if you didn't have anything on her before, I mean?"

"Well, that was only what Kikyo believed." Kagome grinned. "As I said, we've had multiple investigations on her for a long time now, over several years in fact. But not until recently were we able to tie it all into something useful – the Shikon deal investigation (which was at first just a way to see her operate at close range, we didn't think the actual deal was really worth the trouble) turned up leads important to other murder and fraud enquiries. Kikyo, most likely, didn't know just how far we were, and decided to risk meeting me. The reason I chickened out was simply that I wasn't sure I'd be able to contain myself from socking her a good one." She grinned at him. "Which, in the eyes of agent Inu-yasha – already suspicious of the weird girl from New York, alternatively Washington – would register as assault. Arrest and subsequent blowing of cover would not do the investigation any good. And before you have time to mope, sorry. I had to pretend. This was strictly undercover."

"I never mope," said Inu-yasha indignantly. "I occasionally sulk a little. In a proper grown up fashion, of course." He spoke lightly, but was touched that she apologized for not sharing with him. Although all those times he'd wondered about what the hell was the deal with that girl… he wouldn't have minded if she'd explained just a little bit! But with that kind of operations, it was tell all or tell nothing, and it didn't take an idiot to figure out which was the better strategy.

"_Maybe she's an impostor, pretending to be from the CIA but in fact out to steal important secrets?"_ These were the words Sesshoumaru had said to him during their first conversation about Kagome. But not until now did he recall what his brother had then gone on to say…

"_Or wait! Maybe she's some sort of secret secret agent, working alongside of us with things we have no idea of?"_

"What are you grinning at?" asked Kagome. Inu-yasha shook his head.

"Just thinking that sometimes when he's not aware of it, my brother can be awfully smart," he said, taking a long draught of his (of course excellent) coffee.

"Yeah," said Kagome, her tone considering. "And dead sexy to boot."

Inu-yasha spat his coffee out. Kagome looked disapprovingly at him for such waste of fantastic espresso, and then had the cheek to grin.

"Just jerking you around," she said.

_Jerk is the word_, thought Inu-yasha ungraciously. He glowered at her (she smirked) and then decided to let it pass. She sure knew how to get to him though. Devious smart-ass.

"So what happens next?" he asked. "Sister in jail, and you back off towards Washington? Or was it New York? And what was the deal about that anyway?"

"I was actually telling the truth about that." Kagome made an indignant sound as he raised his eyebrows, looking incredulous. "Hey! What's up with that expression? When have I ever given you a reason to distrust me? Don't answer that, it was a rhetorical question and I don't suppose you have anything nice like "Never, dear" to say anyway. Alright, I live in New York, mainly, but for the last ten months before I came here investigations had me staying in Washington. That was also where we had agreed it would be best for me to say I was from – less snouts, more anonymity. And I'll be heading back now, yeah. In the next couple of days, probably. My boss will be wanting for me to tidy up, plus some of Kikyo's trials will be held in Washington so she'll want me there to supervise, explain, cajole, threaten, go up as a witness and do whatever else it takes to get sis convicted on all charges in all trials."

"Was that "she" as in your boss? I thought you said your boss was a he."

"So true." Kagome nodded, apparently having expected the question. "Thing was, we're the only CIA department headed by a woman, and you being so devilishly intelligent and nosy to match would have poked around until you realized what department I came from, hesitated over the fact that murders have little to do with a regular drug deal investigation, drawn the conclusion that there were quite a lot of things I weren't telling you, started asking questions and probably blown my cover."

Inu-yasha blinked. It always made him slightly unsure when she spoke like this – unsure whether she was taking the piss or genuinely thought he was the modern Sherlock and Einstein welded in one. He decided that it was probably a mix of both, but with the emphasis on the first alternative.

He then realized what she had been saying.

"Wait – a couple of days? That soon?"

"Yeah. Lots of things to sort now. I'm out of job, remember?" When he looked completely uncomprehending she grinned and explained, "My division has just been dissolved. Kikyo's behind bars and will probably stay there for the next couple of decades. So what we've been working for during these years is now accomplished. I'm practically guaranteed a high-ranking job in any neighbouring department though, so it's not as if I'll be kicked out. But it'll take up a lot of my time after I get back… I have some personal issues to sort as well."

_With Hojo_, thought Inu-yasha gloomily. He suddenly felt like killing himself, or even better, killing Hojo.

"Hey," said Kagome, and he started guiltily.

"I wasn't going to really do it!" he said quickly. Kagome raised her eyebrows.

"Do what?"

"Er…" Inu-yasha reminded himself that Kagome was not a mind reader, despite hints in that direction. "Sorry, just thinking about something. You were saying…?"

"Well, I talked to Jinenji earlier, just before the trial started," said Kagome, grinning from ear to ear. "About his family."

"Really? Sheez, I must have missed something. I didn't even know he had a girlfriend."

"Oh, he doesn't."

"He has a boyfriend!"

"No!" laughed Kagome, shaking her head. "No, I mean about his family as in his parents. His mother, to be exact."

"What? Why would you – oh," he finished as a light went up for him. "You little devil."

"Mrs Hana Daimen, unchallenged lightweight boxing champion for ten years in her youth. In later years challenged to a match by a certain Inu-yasha, and once again establishing her champion status." Kagome started laughing again, as she saw the miffed expression on Inu-yasha's face. "That was such a funny story! It really served you right, you know."

"What on earth is that supposed to mean!"

"You do need taking down to earth a bit sometimes. And in Mrs Damien's case, she did it literally!"

"Oh, shut up."

"How fast was the knock-out? A minute?"

"Forty-seven seconds, if you want to know… hey!" he exclaimed as she broke into fresh peals of laughter. "OK, OK, so I was maybe a bit too cocky and I learned my lesson. See? I even admit it myself! Can you stop hassling me about it now?"

"Of course." Kagome grinned. "I'm just saying, it's good we only got shot at during the course of this case. If we'd had fist fights as well we could have casualties."

"…You're never going to let this go, are you."

"Something this good? I don't think so!" And Kagome started laughing once again.

Inu-yasha sat back and watched her as she mimed boxing a person to the right of her and then fell off her chair in an impression of his spectacular loss to Jinenji's mum. He found himself smiling, even though what she was re-enacting loud enough for half the café to hear was the possibly most embarrassing day of his life. Something had just dawned on him, something he would have noticed a lot earlier if his detective work hadn't been so completely lousy when it came to his feelings.

He had fallen hard for this girl.

This girl who was leaving for Washington in a couple of days.

This girl who had a boyfriend.

_Man, what do I do now?_ thought Inu-yasha.

………………………………

Kagome spent her last days saying goodbye to everyone she had met during the course of their work, accompanied by Inu-yasha who had taken a short vacation from work. They met up with Sango and Miroku (meeting up with Sango alone seemed to have become impossible, since the two of them were by now practically joined at the hip) and were treated to a free show at The Happy Bunny. They stopped by at the police station for a coffee with Jinenji and were told all about his latest case, an investigation about fraud that had turned out to be very hard to crack. (The next morning the police station received a bag with evidence from the prime suspect's flat that turned out to be just what they needed to land him in jail. Sota swore on his honour that he had nothing to do with it when Inu-yasha asked him about it later, but Sota's honour was of course nothing to be taken seriously.)

Inu-yasha's vacation was luckily not a problem to the YSA. The agency wasn't hard pressed at the moment anyway, and the rest of the guys could without a bad conscience spend one of the evenings at the Three-eyed Bull, having a good-bye party. It was a great night, and Toto-sai finally had to kick them out of the pub at seven in the morning – quite literally. He tried to get the waitress Haroni to help – his foot got sore after a while – but she had decided to attend a Matrix after-party with Ginta and Hakkaku and left him to do his kicking by himself (despite threats of cut pay). The two cousins had after some research been able to prove that the three of them were indeed related (they shared a great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandmother) and tried to use their kinship to get free beers whenever they were at the pub. This was not appreciated by Toto-sai. (Four weeks later the three wolf demons took two months off from the respective jobs and left for Bahamas, to record the fourth Matrix movie, Matrix Goes Tropical. They were convinced it would make millions.)

When Kagome left the Three-eyed Bull that night, or rather morning, she had the phone numbers of both Koga and Hiten in her pocket, and had been more or less forced into a promise of ringing them if she ever came to town again. (She didn't seem to find the idea a terribly bad one though, noted Inu-yasha with a stab of jealousy.)

The days passed all too quickly, and before Inu-yasha had even had time to accept the fact that Kagome would soon be gone, they were speeding off towards the airport in Sesshoumaru's car. While Kagome sat in the front seat next to Sesshoumaru, who was driving, talking with animation about her plans once she got back to New York, Inu-yasha sulked in the back seat. He hadn't had a minute alone with Kagome since the day of the trial, and had been looking forward to driving her to the airport – but of course Sesshoumaru had to come too, the bastard.

However, Inu-yasha had a card up his sleeve. Grinning to himself, he took out his phone and started writing a message.

They arrived at the airport with plenty of time to spare – which was just as well, since it seemed to be rather short-staffed at the moment. Apparently one of their receptionists had upped and left quite suddenly and without notice, to start a tattoo shop or something like that. After waiting for quite a while in the line Kagome finally got her ticket, and walked back to the two brothers.

"Well Kagome," smiled Sesshoumaru, taking her hand in his, "it's been a pleasure. I can't speak for Inu-yasha, but – "

"Sesshoumaaaaaaru!"

Sesshoumaru's features froze. Glancing over his shoulder he paled visibly, and then jumped behind Inu-yasha, crouching down. "Hide me!" he whispered.

_One-nil to Inu-yasha!_ thought Inu-yasha, full of glee.

"There is a good alcove to hide in a bit further off," he then said helpfully, pointing out the direction. "If you run you can probably make it. I'll say you went the other way."

Sesshoumaru gave this some consideration (about 0.045 second's consideration) and then bolted, dodging through airport workers and travelers with the speed of a frightened cat. No sooner had he disappeared than a young girl ran up and stopped short in front of Inu-yasha, trying to catch her breath.

"Sesshou… maru…?" she panted. Inu-yasha pointed in the opposite direction of Sesshoumaru's flight. The girl bowed her thanks and rushed off, scattering innocent bystanders like leaves in her dash.

"What the…" said Kagome.

"Sesshoumaru saved her from a kidnapping two years ago," Inu-yasha explained, trying to suppress a grin and failing. "Rin's been smitten with him ever since. She's like Kohaku, only scarier." And she was also the only hold Inu-yasha had over his older brother. Sesshoumaru didn't know that Inu-yasha had acquired Rin's cell phone number, and thus did not understand how the girl always appeared at the most improbable moments. He saw her as a psychic stalker. Inu-yasha saw her as a good way to get rid of his brother when he wanted.

"So…" he said. "I can't believe you're leaving."

"Me neither, actually." Kagome smiled. "I'll definitely come back to visit though. Among other things, I have to see how you'll do with your new colleague."

"What new – " Inu-yasha started, and then noticed her mischievous grin. "Oh no. Not Goshinki The Bastard."

"You can get him out of prison with your contacts."

"Can, but don't wanna."

"You're going to need him for your new investigation." Kagome grinned, and flipped her badge open. "Because on the authority of the new head of Uncleared Crime – got the call yesterday – I'm ordering you to begin looking into the doings of a certain demon known as Naraku."

"What? But you told us he was completely innocent in the Shikon deal!"

"In the Shikon deal, yes." Kagome nodded. "But he's far from clean. He hid Kagura from us, remember? He didn't want us to question her, because she has information about what goes on at the club and as Hiten and Manten and lots of other people have told us, there's stuff going on there that's definitely not legal. So you're going to look into it and find something to get him for. I still have to look at him behind bars before I can die easy."

"Come on Kagome, what do you want us to do?" Inu-yasha frowned. "We can't build a charge on what a few witnesses say – and that's all we have, you know that. The guy leaves nothing to chance. We could as well try to handcuff smoke."

"Ah, but that was before the help of Kikyo Higurashi," said Kagome with a wink. "I'd like you to investigate all that's been done by a certain _Onigumo_ the past five years. I want to know where he's been, what he's done, what or who he's bought, everything. And then… we'll show Naraku just how nasty we can be." Kagome grinned again. "'Naraku' is an alias. He does everything important in his other name. And as it is today, with there being records of practically everything, you're bound to find something incriminating. Check the Red Cross records and see if they transferred any money to Onigumo's account, for example – you remember what he told us about Sango's father."

"…Wow. I think that's the first good thing about these past days," said Inu-yasha, shocked at first and then slowly starting to grin. The news was very welcome indeed. He had noticed Naraku at Kikyo's trial and he'd had to hold hard onto his chair to prevent himself from jumping at the other demon. Finally getting a lead on him was like having Christmas come early. "I'll get onto Yura immediately… get her to run some feelers out… and I _might_ go and talk to Goshinki as well then, since you seem to like him so much…" He stopped. "It would be much more fun if you'd be there with me to cuff him though."

"I'll have to take time off to be here then," said Kagome.

Silence fell for a while. Inu-yasha wanted to say something more, wanted to explain some of what was moving through his head, wanted to make her see just how much her leaving would hurt him. But words had never been his strong side…

"Well… bye then," he said, hating himself.

"Yeah…" Kagome bit her lip.

"Oy." They both turned and saw the clerk Kagome had bought her ticket from leaning over the counter. He jerked his thumb in the direction of the security check. "Yer plane leaves pretty soon, and we gotta make sure ya ain't a terrorist. Had a gel looked just like ya who hijacked a plane not long ago ya see, ya can't blame us fer bein' careful. So if ye'd hurry it up and say bye to yer boyfriend we'd be real grateful."

"He's not my boyfriend," said Kagome, automatically. She paused, and then turned back to Inu-yasha, frowning. "You know, I'm getting really tired of telling people that."

"What do you want me to do?" asked Inu-yasha grumpily. "Tattoo NOT KAGOME'S BOYFRIEND on my forehead?"

"Maybe." Kagome seemed to consider this for a while. Suddenly her face lit up again as she smiled at him. "If you leave out the 'not'."

She stretched up on her toes and kissed him.

**THE END**

……………………………………

Waah, it's over:( Can't believe something I've been working on since June last year (that's when I began looking at the story and writing a few chapters to see if it could work) is finally FINISHED! That's so weird!

Aaaanyway… thank you everybody for your lovely support! It's been so much fun reading all your reviews and getting inspiration. I hope to see you soon again, when I start working on something else… got a couple of ideas lying around that I'll be giving some more time now… so I'll be back. (Eventually.)

Ciao everybody!

**Elsiey: **No matter if you missed a chapter or two, as long as you read the last one:) It's been great having you review this story – really makes me happy when I see your name in the reviews after practically EVERY chapter! (Wow.)

And just because I like you so much, I relabelled this as Humour/Mystery. (I didn't know there _was_ a mystery category. Cool.)

**Inu-yasha'smistress:** Triplets? Where did I write anything about triplets? …wait while I scan the last chapter… oh yeah. The judge had triplets! (Can't even remember myself what I've written…) Yup, she has triplets. She's a poor, over-worked, single mum juggling her three kids with a desire to build a career and… Christ, if I go on I'll be able to write a whole story about the damn judge.

Thank you for staying with me so long!

**glenlightarrow:** Yeah, I guess things were very confusing there for a while… heh heh…

**luvinukagome:** I guess you'll have to reopen the case seeing as I took such a long time updating now…;) I had trouble with the computer, sorry. Good luck with you further CIA career :)

**AnimeAngelz:** Dry your tears… :) Hope this ending didn't leave you too disappointed.

**PUNK-CSI-GIRL:** Inu-yasha and Kagome will probably live happily ever after, chasing criminals and drinking coffee to the end of their days. :)

**NefCanuck:** Alice in Wonderland? Yes, I guess I can see the resemblance… :) By the by, thankyou for pointing out (sometime way back) that Kagome needed her revenge on Jakotsu – I hadn't thought about that, but you were completely right.

**Harei sky:** Thanks for all the reviews… and happily, there was a little place for you even in the last chapter. Good hey? (And if you ever do make a movie like that, be sure to send me a copy.)

**TrickyChicky454, Crazy Tengu, Beloved Rose mouko-star:** Well, I haven't got a lot to say except thankyou so much for reviewing! And sorry this is the last chapter… wish this story could go on forever, I've become strangely attached to it… but c'est la vie.


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